A Dark Negative of Love
by 4MeJasper
Summary: What if R and Julie hadn't met during one of his hunting trips? What if R had been captured on one of his hunting trips and taken inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.
1. Chapter 1 - Ambush

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 1 - Ambush

I feel the stirring inside, the one that means hunger. It's a different type of hunger than when I was still alive, though. Back then, it was focused in the stomach, or at least the abdomen. Now, it's an all-over feeling, as if I'm running out of fuel. If I don't get something, I will eventually collapse. Lots of us do, just kind of slow down, moving less and less, until one day becoming Fully Dead.

Realizing I will have to go to the city to hunt, I decide to wait until I meet M at our usual airport sports bar. Looking above through the terminals' glass ceiling, I note that the sun has reached the highest point in the sky, the time we used to call noon, which is when he and I meet each day. I make my way from the conveyor walk-way I was riding to the escalator that leads to the food court. As I get to the top of the escalator, I see him sitting at the empty bar, with the usual filthy, spider web filled beer glasses and white plates covered with molded food in front of him. Those are artifacts from the days of the Living, when this airport would have been bustling with lives, hundreds of people passing one another without making contact, all on their way to somewhere else.

I was undoubtedly one of those travelers at one time myself, though I have no memory of that life. I wear a suit, so I think I must have been a businessman. I just wish I could remember, just as I wish I could remember my name. For some reason, not knowing my name has been one of the hardest parts of this existence.

Upon reaching the bar where M sits waiting for me, I motion towards the outside, to the city, with a jerk of my head.

He surprises me, though, by shaking his head. When I pause, surprised, he gestures towards several young girls sitting at a nearby table. They are gnawing on an arm. Something flashes through my brain, and I'm reminded of a group of people, sitting at a similar table around a plate of appetizers, from a time long ago. Everyone is laughing. The moment passes, and I'm left in the current world. I shake my head to clear it.

So M doesn't want to go with me today. Seeing the group in front of us, I understand. He must have gone out earlier, and brought back food for these girls. M is a popular guy with the ladies. I can't say I see it, because he is older, bearded and bald, and his attire is somewhat disheveled. He is tall, around 6 foot five, though he carries a lot weight, both muscle and fat, on that frame. Perhaps it is his almost-ability to speak that wows the ladies. For me, though, my attempts to speak just seem to puzzle them. Some guys just seem to have it. Or did have it, and carry it with them past the graves that none of us now lie in, into this existence. He wears what must have been a white t-shirt at some point, but now is gray and stained. Bad choice for an eternity, I think. But then, I doubt any of us had any choice of when we chose to die.

Certainly none of those I will hunt today have any choice, though they undoubtedly expect us. Every trip to the city we find fewer and fewer of the Living. Many are locked up in the city's center, behind a fortified wall surrounded by armed guards. But some don't live there. I don't know what choice led them to staying outside, behind the flimsy, unfortified walls of ordinary houses. Were they turned away from the large, fortified complex? Or did they stay outside by choice, hoping to get help more quickly if it ever arrived?

Whatever their reasons, the end result is that there are still groups of the Living in small clusters in the city, waiting for us to find and feed upon, so I don't wonder too hard about their reasons.

I nod my good-bye to M, and begin my shuffle towards the Arrivals Gate of the airport. Once it is clear I am heading towards the outside, and not just another extended walk around the airport, riding the escalators, the usual group of eight to ten Dead assemble, and we begin our slow trek into the city.

The dusty road to the city takes a long time for us to travel. But then again, time is what we have a lot of, now. I see movement along the side of the road, but it doesn't interest me. Four-legged animals, including deer, lift their head from eating grass along the road as we walk. But their scent doesn't interest us. We've certainly tried, but their flesh doesn't satisfy. It's like trying to put Diesel fuel into an electric car. There is on one scent, one flavor can satisfy our hunger: human.

The scent of our former selves, and our future food.

We move along, slowly and stiffly, without grace. But our progress is steady. Soon we reach the outskirts of the city. I can't help but wonder if this is near where I might have lived, when I was still human. However long ago that was.

As we get closer to the houses, I look forward to the flashes of memories that I get as I consume a fresh brain, the sparks that appear like dreams, reanimating my brain's neurons as the rest of the Living's body will animates my own limbs. Soon our hunting efforts are rewarded, as the wind picks up and brings us a whiff of the Living. In slow motion synchronization, the entire group turns together, and heads towards that scent almost as one.

We find a boarded house, and sense the lives behind it. I feel a second group of Living not too far away, but I focus on this group in front of us. No need to be greedy, we can find the second group on a future hunting expedition. We surround the house, pulling down the boards they have put up in a futile effort to keep us out. They should be able to outrun us, but they have not left enough escape routes, and we easily block their escape.

It is a large enough group that we won't even have to share bodies. A few of the Living have guns, and we are quickly pummeled by bullets, but we keep moving, attacking the shooters first, and ripping into their throats. True, a few of our members take a hit to the head, and go down with soft thuds beside us, but soon everyone left has pulled down a victim except one young girl, new to our world. She tries a gentle tug at the body of my kill, and I start to pull it back, glaring at her, but then I see a lone living figure trying to sneak upstairs from the scene in the living room.

Deciding to follow the escaping human, I yield the dying human whose arm I have torn off to the young one. She won't be able to finish, and I'll be able bring back left-overs to feed those who remain behind. I start up the stairs when the wind brings a whiff of the second group of humans closer.

I pause. Usually humans flee us. Unless…we are now the hunted.

I wait on the upstairs landing, watching the hallway below, holding the whimpering young Living girl by her shoulder. Suddenly the doors we had just crashed through are entered again. I hear heavy footsteps downstairs, the sound of men in boots running. There is the sound of shouting and gunfire, and the moans of the Dead, now dying a final time.

The human I had pursued tries to pull away, desperate to get back down the stairs to the rescuers. Instinctively I tighten my hold on her, and she screams.

Two armed men wearing helmets and facemasks rush up the stairs towards us. They pull her from my grasp and grab for my shoulders. I snap at them, but they are wearing heavy, protective clothing and gloves. The put a metal ring around my neck with a bar attached, and pull me down the stair behind them.

I stumble as they shove me out the front door and down the steps of the house. They almost pull my head off when they force me back to my feet. They walk much more quickly than I do, and as a result I am almost dragged behind them.

Soon, their individual scents, which are maddening enough, are lost in the scent of many Living as we approach the fortified wall. The aroma surrounds me like a mist, driving me nearly crazy with hunger. We approach the fort's gate, which has armed soldiers in front of a barricade. The men holding me have a short talk with those guarding the gate, and the gate is opened and we enter. I am now behind the towering walls, those walls I had long sought to enter.

Inside, there is near chaos of inanimate objects, stacked oddly. It appears that they are building houses, but with limited supplies, inside a limited space. The result is almost a Dr. Seuss-style medley of mismatched, misshapen objects, towering upwards on wobbly foundations. There is maze of narrow paths around these structures, mostly muddy, but in some places covered with Astroturf.

As I am pushed forward, around the twists and turns of these narrow paths, my hunger grows exponentially as the human scents flood my consciousness from all directions, driving me to new depths of desire. I am surrounded by a Living feast, and all out it of my reach.

My escorts stop at a wide metal building, very different from the other oddities we have passed. They open the front door, and we enter a long hallway. Long glass windowed rooms line the hallways, and from behind the glass, curious eyes peek up at me, as the young Living look up from rows of tables. I realize this must be a school. In some rooms, they are working on assembling guns; in others, they labor on various engines and motors. But the sight that terrifies me is the room where a girl works on a body strapped to a table, a body that moves as the Dead man turns in his restraints and gazes out at me, until she removes his eyes. As we move deeper into the building, I begin to smell other Dead nearby, others like me.

Soon we exit the building and reach an enclosure, the walls made of stacked furniture, old cars, and other solid items from past civilizations, and partially lined with chicken wire. A sentry opens the make-shift gate, my collar is loosened, and I am pushed inside.

Immediately, I am shoved to the side by some of the Dead already inside the enclosure, as they struggle to get at the Living soldiers on the other side of the gate. There is a much larger group here than there had been in my hunting party.

Why are we here? As I watch the Dead at the gate, I can see that they are ravenous, much hungrier than I am.

After the other Living soldiers walk away, the Dead inside this enclosure begin what must be their routine. They pace our small enclosure, much as I paced the airport. But whereas in the airport we had lots of space, here there is only a small space about the size of the airport bar M and I used to meet at. There is a small track that hugs the inside of the enclosure, and I realize that it must have been worn by the feet of the Dead, in their slow, circling of our cage.

This is my new world. For however long, for what purpose, remains to be seen.

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	2. Chapter 2 - First Sight

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 2 – First Sight

Though the change of light is meaningless to us, as we seldom sleep, I notice as the early light of dawn starts coming through the holes in our makeshift prison. I suspect that whatever reason the Living have for keeping us here, it won't be pleasant for me, and this could be my last day on this earth.

With this new day's arrival, the quiet around us begins to fade as the normal bustle that accompanies the Living resumes its usual pace. We hear the sound of life from beyond our pen: the hurried footsteps of passers-by, accompanied by the occasional sound of voices interspersed with the mechanical stutter of various motors. All too soon, the armed soldiers return to the chain-link gate. And once again, the Dead around me rush the gate as it is pulled open. I am pushed to the back by the mob, as the others are ravenous with hunger. The soldiers quickly close the gate after letting four Dead out. They lead them away, using long poles and billy clubs to keep them in a group.

The rest of us wait.

Soon I hear the sound of muffled voices, then gunshots. I begin to wonder if we are being kept here for target practice. I look around and realize from the slight change in the others' facial expressions that they know it too. We are being held for some kind of training exercise. But as my hunger increases, that matters less to me.

Back at the airport, we had our own training facility, of a sort. We had made an enclosure of stacked suitcases, and we would occasionally bring back a few of the Living from our hunting trips with us. They would be put into our make-shift pen, where the recently turned children would be trained on how to attack a human. Although our hunger is instinctive, feeding is not, at least for those Dead turned as children. Killing techniques needs to be taught to the young ones, or they will not survive. I have watched occasionally as the instructors urge the young ones onto these captive humans. "Throat," they instruct, as the children attack their living prey. Occasionally a Living becomes too much for the child to handle, and the adults have to rush in to finish him off.

It would make sense that the Living would have a similar training school for their young.

At one point, I sink to the ground for a few minutes in a shallow hole under some of the metal desk and furniture stacked as part of the wall. I suddenly smell intensely human scents, and I peek through an opening between an old iron desk and rusty Chevy truck bed that form part of the enclosure. I catch just a glimpse of a young woman with blonde hair, followed by a small group of children. She is beautiful, her shoulder length blond hair flowing around her face as she moves. Though it seems odd, it's almost as if the air is shimmering around her with energy, as if she is exuding a life force so strong that it attracts the sunlight. The children who tag along behind her must be part of a school group, I guess, as she is too young to be their mother. As they walk in a single-file line past the enclosure, a few of them pause to try to peek in, and they see me.

One girl screams when she sees my gray eyes peering back at them, but the boys press in for a closer look, chattering excitedly. One even tries to put a long stick through the opening. I grab the stick and jerk it out of his hands.

I hear a young woman's voice among the jumble of the children's excited voices. "Guys, come on!" she says. "Do you want to be late?" Must be the blonde girl, I think.

"Aw, Miss Julie, I almost got that one in the eyes with my stick," comes the disappointed voice of the boy.

"We're not thinking about them today," she replies. "We're going to the Community Center for a story. It's about a hobbit, and the journey he goes on with a wizard and some dwarfs to kill a dragon. Do you want to hear it?"

I hear a little girl's high-pitched voice ask, "Will there be zombies?"

"Well, something like them. In this book, they are called 'orcs'. There were once beautiful elves, now they are something else. Come on."

"I want to go," says the little girl who shrieked when she saw me. "It smells funny here."

Wihin a few minutes, the little group was just a memory. But the flash of the young woman's face and the sweet sound of her voice linger in my mind for some reason.

Soon the soldiers return. They have their helmets on and face visors down as they open the gate again. One of the Dead immediately staggers out, launching himself onto the nearest solder, crazed from hunger. But they capture him easily in their neck harness and lead him back into the hallways, slamming and latching the gate behind him.

One of the soldiers stays behind. There is a small exchange with the guard from the previous night, who leaves while the newcomer stays. The night guard holds the door open, turning back to the newcomer, calling back to ask, "Perry, sugar in the coffee?"

The soldier nods, and the guards leaves.

After the night guard leaves, the solder takes off his protective helmet and looks in at us, as if trying to understand. Without his face visor, I can see that he is just a teen-ager, and he looks tired and distracted as he runs his hand through his hair, wiping off the sweat that accumulates under helmets. He is tall, with dark hair, and a scraggly beard, and appears to be maybe 19 or 20 years old.

Looking around, he picks up a rusty metal bar from the cluttered ground and starts to toy with it, tossing it up in the air, and then catching it as it falls. I approach the gate, and hold out my hand for the bar. He looks at me, and then starts to stick it through the gate. I am reminded of the actions of the children earlier in the day, but I reach for it anyway. As soon as I almost have it, he yanks it back, laughing.

Laughing. Something else I cannot do. The first guard returns, bringing two trays of food with him. The smell of food does not appeal to me, but the smell of the guards does. I realize I am starting to get hungry. The two talk while they eat, sitting at their post outside our gate, and the morning passes. Inside our enclosure, we begin our slow, circular pacing, occasionally moaning.

Later in the day, another new Dead is brought in the same way I was, shackled in a neck collar.

As the group approaches the gate with their thrashing prisoner, the two soldiers on duty stand up, and I notice that the new soldier doesn't fully fasten his helmet back on. As they open the gate, the flailing Dead grabs at the gate and nearly knocks down one of the guards as they unfasten his collar. Struggling with my hunger, I am at the gate and in the front of the pack, watching the struggle between the Living and Dead, just beyond my reach. Or are they?

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	3. Chapter 3 - Escape

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

**Last weekend, FanFiction was having technical difficulties. The chapter I uploaded Friday night at midnight did not until 4:00 P.M. on Sunday, 40 hours later. Hope things are more stable now…**

Chapter 3 - Escape

_Later in the day, another new Dead is brought in, the same way I was. _

_As the group approaches the gate with their thrashing prisoner, the two soldiers on duty stand up, I notice that the new soldier doesn't fully fasten his helmet back on. As they open the gate, the flailing Dead grabs at the gate and nearly knocks down one of the guards as they unfasten his collar. Struggling with my hunger, I am at the gate and in the front of the pack, watching the struggle between the Living and Dead, just beyond my reach. Or are they? _

In the confusion surrounding the falling soldier, I manage to come up to the gate behind the distracted guard. Grabbing a lock of his hair through the chain link fence on either side of the gate, I yank his head to the fence, and manage to bite his neck. He pulls back instantly, stumbling away from the gate, clutching his neck. Glancing around, he seems to reassure himself that none of the other guards has seen this. He quickly pulls down his helmet and visor so the other Living won't see the wound.

I wait at my place, staring at him, and as the other guards leave, the Dead begin to resume their pacing. The bitten guard turns back to the enclosure, lifting his helmet off, putting his hand to his neck. The other Dead seem to sense the drama going on, and stop. He stares at me, then gently rubs a finger against the wound on his neck . When he pulls it away, it is tipped red with blood.

He stares at his hand for a moment, as expressions flitting across his face, ranging from shock to fear to resignation. After looking at the blood on his finger one last time, he unholsters his gun and cocks it, pointing it at me. I hold my ground, and our stare down continues._ Welcome to the party, pal,_ I think to myself. After a few minutes, he slowly moves the barrel of the gun away from me, and puts it into his own mouth. He sits like that, with his eyes closed for several minutes. But it seems he can't do it.

Suddenly he sets his gun down and puts his face into his hands. He utters one word, almost like a prayer, so softly I can scarcely hear it: "Julie." He seems to come to some kind of decision, and moving slowly, removes his helmet, protective vest and gloves and sets them on the bench by the gate. He looks up at the sky, and then back down at his hands, the expression on his face finally registering resignation, as if a moment he had been long expected has now arrived.

He walks up to the gate, opens it and steps inside, allowing it to slam behind him.

The Dead are on him instantly, but as I am closest, I grab his head, smashing his skull against the old Chevy that forms part of the wall. We quickly pull him to pieces, as the others are ravenous; some appear not to have eaten in weeks. Since I am the newest and therefore strongest, I manage to hold onto his head, working my fingers inside of it along the fracture line caused by hitting the truck. Prying it open around this crack, I scoop out his brain, fending off the others who want to share my prize. Bending over it the skull protectively, I wave toward the rest of the body, indicating I have left them the meaty parts, the arms and legs.

I have the prize, though, and I intend to keep it for later. It is something meant to be savored slowly, not gobbled down to stave off starvation. The brain cannot sustain our bodies on its own; it just gives…pleasure. As we consume it, it seems to cause the neurons in our own brains to fire again, but the memories and visions see are not our own. They are the dreams and thoughts of the Living to whom the brain belonged. I stuff the brain into my pocket, just gnawing on the meat at the base of the skull for now.

By unspoken agreement, we eat quietly, then, moving quickly, we begin to dig with our hands, working to bury the guard's bones and clothes. The dirt is already disturbed around our walking track, and as we only have to bury small items, not a whole, articulated body, we succeed in hiding the traces. Or so I hope.

When we're done, I put a small piece of the brain in my mouth, still remembering the look on his face as he felt my bite mark on his neck. It's almost…as if he was relieved. As I savor the fresh bit, rolling it around in my mouth, my present surroundings fade away, and my brain sputters back to life, firing the dead man's memories.

oooo

My name is Perry Kelvin, and today is my sixth birthday! My friends are here for my party, and my mother is holding a cake with candles on it in front of me. The six blue candles are lit and burning, though the flames are being pushed by the wind, and everyone is singing while I blow them out. The cake is chocolate, with a real Thomas the Train on it! My party is outside, in a large park by our house. Mom has selected a spot not far from the metal playground equipment. Our brown wooden table with matching bench, splintered with age in places, is surrounded by my friends and classmates, laughing and trying to smear cake on one another's faces.

Mom claps her hands, and it's time to open presents. As I start to pull one from the brightly wrapped stack of boxes that cover one end of the table.

"That's from me," Alan yells. "It's a…"

Here he is stopped by his sister, my classmate. Alan's only four, he doesn't know not to tell everything he knows to everybody. His sister, of course, being my age, is much smarter. "Let him open it and find out, dummy," she says.

Alan starts to cry, and Mom moves in to soothe him. What a baby…

Oooo

I am Perry Kelvin. Today I am ten. Dad is driving the car, which we have crammed full with as much stuff as we can, and we're even pulling a small U-Haul behind us. We couldn't bring a lot of my toys, but Mom said we can't take everything. We are lucky, Dad said, that we could find this trailer. We are going to a bigger city, where it is safe. Mom is in the front seat, biting her lip, looking as if she might cry.

She wears a headband, and one of her earrings is partially caught behind it. I unbuckle my seatbelt to lean forward and free it so that it will dangle, but she hears the seatbelt click and turns around.

"Keep that on," she says softly so that Dad won't hear. "We don't want anything to happen to you."

"Are we ever coming back here?" I asked.

She shook her head. "I don't know, but something tells me won't."

"What about grandpa and grandma?"

Now she is fighting back tears. "They have chosen to stay behind, in the house that they raised me in."

I reach over and pat the seat next to me. It was empty initially, now it has some of my stuff on it. "Aunt Kay?" I ask.

"She's staying an extra day or two, to try to talk sense to Grandma and Grandpa. I told her we would get her an apartment big enough to stay with us. She's got gas in her Taurus, and we're bringing her things. She'll be joining us…"

But I could tell from the tone that my mother never expected to see Aunt Kay again.

oooo

The firings fade, and I am back in the enclosure. I shove the rest of Perry's brain into my pocket, and walk to the gate. As I look through the fence, I see the lock lying on the wooden bench. Stunned, I realize that while the gate is latched, it isn't locked. Perry Kelvin didn't try to put the lock on the gate behind himself as he walked into the enclosure to meet his death at our hands. After careful manipulation with the stick I tugged away from boy earlier, I am able to unlatch the lever, and lift it.

As it opens, the rest of the Dead follow behind me, quietly, none of us quite sure of what to do. As I put on the clothes Perry left on the bench, I hear the voices of the guards from inside the building. They're obviously coming back, and we don't have much time. I signal the others to go back into the enclosure, lower the face visor on the helmet to cover my face, and begin to push the chicken wire gate closed behind them.

Their motions seemed impossibly slow to me, but I get the gate closed and latched just as four more armed soldiers appear.

I watch the approaching soldiers carefully, knowing that my ability to escape relies on them not learning that I'm not Perry. Though the four look almost identical, since they are all wearing protective jackets and helmets, I do notice small differences. The one in front is taller than the others. Another man is heavyset. The other two are built about the same, and almost the same as Perry Kelvin, both tall and thin. One thing I notice that they all have is common is the natural fluidity and grace of their motions.

"Hey, Kelvin! Grigio's looking for you!" the tall guard in front tells me. "Guess the break you're giving your buddy here is over. Where is he, anyway?"

I don't move, not knowing what to do.

"Well, go on," he says. "No point keeping the big man waiting. We can take over here."

As I stand silently, trying to think of how best to proceed, the heavysset solder jostles the tall man. "Whaddja do, get his daughter pregnant?"

The four men begin to snicker, and I start to walk, trying as hard as I could to control my motions so I don't have the Dead shuffle.

They watch my efforts in silence for a few nerve-racking seconds. The leader looks uncertain, but then the heavyset man bursts out laughing. "Julie really work you over last night, guy? You look as if you can barely walk! You should lay off the vodka, at least."

I nodded my head slowly, careful to lift my feet and not to just shuffle them along the ground. They watched my slow progress to the door, the other two men joining the second guard in laughing.

"Grigio work you over?" the heavyset guard continues. "Don't want anyone to check out your black eye, man? We get it." They turned to one another and started talking, ignoring me. I look out of the corner of my eye, back at my former cellmates, who were all standing quietly at the gate. I bite the side of my mouth, vowing that I would try to come back for them, though I doubted I would have the chance.

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	4. Chapter 4 - The Stadium Roof

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

_Author's Note: In the last chapter, I had some trouble finding symbols that would set Perry's memories apart from the rest of the chapter. I hope the pattern of "ooo's" works better than the pattern of "++++'s that I tried last time._

Chapter 4 - The Stadium Roof

Once inside the long low building that served as the humans' school, I found a small janitor's closet that contained a sink and some metal shelves with various cleaning supplies, plus mops and brooms. I went inside, closing the door behind me, and retrieved a bit of brain from my pocket. I was quite sure I couldn't negotiate the city streets and main gate guarded by soldiers by myself, even wearing Perry's clothes. I moved too slowly, and eventually someone would ask me a question I would need to answer verbally. Maybe a memory of Perry Kelvin's would give me some directions out of this place.

So I put a small bit of his brain into my mouth, turning it and savoring the flavor, waiting for something, anything I could use to get out of the city. What I got turned out to me much more valuable.

oooo

I am racing Julie to our hideaway, the stadium rooftop, and get ahead of her. I don't like being too far ahead, so I slow down as I reach the part of the concrete walk way where we have covered the door to the utility room containing the ladder to the roof with boards. Pulling them aside, I wait for her to catch up and get inside the small electrical utility area before replacing the wood so that no one will follow us. Scrambling up the ladder and pushing open the trap door with one hand, I reach down for her, pulling her up into our secret place on the stadium rooftop.

Alone, above the crowded and borderline squalid existence we live inside our prison/fortress walls, up here we can be free.

She laughs breathlessly, still trying to catch her breath from our race to the ladder, as she gets onto her feet on the roof. She twirls, and her golden hair flares out around her face.

The laughter does not totally reach her eyes though. The love that was in them once is gone. I have left her, though I'm still physically present. She knows it, and I know it. But I will do my best to keep her safe.

I spread out the red blanket I brought with me, lie down and reach for her. She stands over me, and then kneels by my side, and reaching out, she strokes my face. That still brings a shiver, and I wish it was enough. She lies down next to me, and soon we are in one another's arms, taking such comfort as we can from this world. Our only witness the sky above.

ooooo

The pictures end, and I come out of the janitor's closet and freeze, flattening myself against the wall as a line of Living teen-agers leaves a class room, filing past me. A few seem to recognize the jacket, and give me a "Hey, Perry" as they pass. I realize the jacket has my name, or rather, his name on it. Kelvin.

After all this time as "R", it seems I have a name now, at least to them. I nod back at them, hoping it is enough. It seems to be, as they pass without becoming alarmed. I make my way down the hall to the front door after they are gone, struggling to keep up a human façade through my gait. I knew this would be tricky, and if I had a heart, it would have been pounding from fear from that close call. Stepping outside, I strain for Perry' memories, trying to find something I can use as a guide to freedom. All around me, I see fortified walls and the Living's security measures. But to the left, I see the stadium.

I start to walk in that direction. Oddly, I feel that the more I try to walk like the Living, the easier it gets. Is just the atmosphere and surrounding rubbing off? I almost feel as if there is some life force present in this city so crowded with humans, that it is in the air, infecting me!

A sudden image pops through my mind. It is the blond girl, the one the children called Julie, the same one that I saw in Kelvin's memories. I begin to think that she is energizing me. I play my own memory of her from this morning again…with the children following her.

Suddenly I am brought to a stop. The boy's memories of her…I just ate her boyfriend's brain. Although I've never been comfortable killing humans, somehow, harming this girl seems worse.

Shaking my head to clear it, I make my way to the stadium. When I see any of the Living coming towards me, I just lean against a wall if I don't have time to get behind something. I move my head in a nod, and apparently this works. Generally, the Living give me a one-word greeting – "Zup?", and my nod suffices as an answer to this casual greeting.

I know that if I have to answer using words, my slow, labored voice will give me away. I don't know how much longer I can keep up this façade, as I've just been lucky so far. I'm sure that Perry will eventually be missed, and they'll start a search. Even if only for him, and I appear to be him, I will be lost, as they will shoot me when they realize what I am. A Dead among the Living. The momentary distraction of my fear causes me to stumble, and I force myself to focus. One foot ahead of the other, picking my feet up off of the ground to avoid the appearance of shuffling.

I keep walking, and finally I reach the stadium. I being to circle it, looking for the concealed staircase that I saw in Perry's memories.

Hours pass, and night falls, but I keep looking. It's become quite dark, but even as the light fades, I can still search by following Julie and Perry's scents. At least here, I am not encountering the Living. Julie's is steadily getting stronger. She must have been here recently. The one whiff I had of her as she passed this morning lingers in my senses. Eventually it seems to be concentrated in one small area at by an entrance gate. I pace the area, looking for anything that will take me up to the roof, then pull at a loose board, and it moves in my hand. Behind it is a small iron stairway. So Perry and Julie have been keeping this spot secret, just as I saw in his memory. I hope it's secret enough to conceal my presence while I formulate a plan of escape.

I begin to climb up the ladder, clumsily at first, as it takes a few minutes for my body to remember the moves. First, grab a bar with one hand, then lift the other hand to grasp the next rung, and then follow that by lifting a foot. Pushing myself towards the top by alternating lifting a hand or foot…over and over. Just as I was starting to get the hang of it, I was at the top, so I pushed up the trapdoor I had seen in Perry's memories, and found myself on the stadium roof. At least up here, I thought, I won't have to deal with the soldiers. Maybe I can drop off over an edge to the ground, and get back to the airport.

Walking over to the edge, I lean over the low railing, and see it must be eight stories high. Instead of dropping over the side to a near certain Final Death, I decide to lie down on the top of the roof, much as Perry had done in the flashback from his memories. The red blanket from I saw from his mind is still on the roof. A little damp, but it's a nice place to lie down. Only since it's night, I'm staring up at the stars, not at his girl girlfriend or the blue sky from his memories. As I lay on my back, I almost seem to feel cold. Must be memory, something triggered by the feeling of the wind blowing over me. After all, the Dead don't experience cold or heat.

I lay and stare. As much as I would like to pull out a piece of Perry's brain, I've eaten enough of it today. I need to save it. But I think about something else I might explore, so I dig around in his pocket and pull out the little box with earplugs I had seen him fiddling with earlier in the day.

The earplugs indicate that it produces sound, and after pushing a few buttons and dials, I figure out how it works. Music is the key to the soul, right? Though this is quite different than the record player I keep on my 747 back at the airport, still, music is music.

Scrolling down the list, I struggle with the words of the titles. For some reason, it seems maybe Perry gives me a boost from inside, as I get a flash of insight on one area, and can just make out the words "Julie's List." It's more from his memories than my own ability to read, as I haven't been able to read in…as long as I've been Dead, I think.

After listening for an hour, trying to imagine what this set might mean to this couple, I decide it's time to get back to work on figuring out how to escape from this stronghold.

So I look over the edge of the stadium again. And it is still a very long drop to the ground.

The wall is so high, in fact, that the Living are using this area as one of the walls for their fort. Smart – it's well built, and nearly insurmountable. I look around, wondering if there might be some material, rope or long banner that I could hang over the edge and use as a ladder to climb down.

As I'm turning away from the edge, a movement from the ground catches my eye, and I peek over the edge again. I am astonished to see a small group of people gathered in the former parking lot, standing among the few battered, rusted cars that are scattered across the blacktop, relics of a time when people did tailgating outside of stadiums. From their gentle swaying motion, I realize this is a group of the Dead. I am startled to see them this close to the fortified walls, though. They're in much greater danger of caught than I was yesterday, further out in the city. What are they doing in the open?

Somehow the bulk of the leader and his sway look familiar. Could it be…M? I squint down and decide to wave to him. He doesn't notice, as he isn't looking up, so I poke around on the rooftop, and finally find a half-empty water bottle lying not too far from the blanket. I toss it over the edge of the wall, and watch its progress towards the ground. My aim was surprisingly accurate - it just misses M's head.

The sound of the water bottle hitting the feet at the ground he notices, and he finally looks up. I wave; he waves back. Good – contact!

We stay that way for a while, staring at one another. Even though we are separated from a distance, I can feel a connection between myself and them. M must have come into the city looking for me, when I didn't return. If my eyes could tear up with emotion, they would.

As light starts to come up in the east, M gestures towards the nearby houses, and shuffles off towards them, leading his group out of the exposed area of the parking lot next to the stadium wall. It would not do for them to get caught by the soldiers in the daylight. I've already been dragged in here in by the soldiers, and I really don't want to see that happen to my friend as well.

Suddenly, I hear soft noises on the ladder rungs below me, and a rustling under the trap door leading up to the roof from below.

I lower my helmet and visor, and crouch immediately behind where the door will be pushed backward in order to open. Preparing to defend myself, I watch as a slender hand appears at the edge of the door, pushing it back towards me.

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	5. Chapter 5 - First Conversation

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 5 - First Conversation

The wind brings a tantalizing whiff of a Living to me, making me tense, ready to attack and eat if possible. A blonde head appears at the trap door, peering cautiously into the darkness, checking before she climbs up onto the roof. As she turns around, I see it is the girl from Perry' memory, the same girl I saw yesterday with the group of children. It's Julie. I try the word "Julie" out on my slow lips, savoring the feel of it as it leaves my mouth.

I relax as I realize she has come alone. Since I'm partially shielded behind the open door, she doesn't see me right away in the semi-darkness. As I watch her finish climbing onto the roof, she begins whispering frantically, "Perry? Perry!"

I relax from my predatory crouch and sit back on my heels. For some reason, I don't want to hurt her. It takes a minute, but finally she sees me. Immediately she dashes over to stand in front of me. She appears cold, hugging her arms tightly to her chest, shivering slightly. I see she is only wearing a light denim jacket over a floral print top, and the valance of the top is blowing in the breeze around the waistband of her jeans. It must not be warm enough for the early morning air.

"Perry!" she says in an exasperated tone, kicking my foot when I don't respond. "They're all looking for you! What are you doing up here?"

Sighing, she plops down next to me, reaching for my hand. As I still have the glove on, I extend it to her. She takes it, and starts to tug at the glove, removing it.

I grab her wrist, preventing her.

"What is it? You know, you're starting to freak me out," she says softly.

_You aint' seen nothing yet,_ I think, and I raise my face visor. Julie jumps up, backwards, her hand over her mouth.

"Ju-lie," I say out loud, trying hard to let her know I won't hurt her.

But I can see she's too close to the edge of the roof. I lean forward, grabbing her hand and pulling her away from the edge of the wall, as she struggles against my grip.

But though we Dead may be slow, we are still strong. I hold onto her, and I don't let go. I pull her down next to me, making my best soothing shushing sound. It doesn't come out quite right, though. I think it sounds more like a hiss, actually. So I put my finger to my lips.

Her scent is strong and appealing, all the things the Dead in me longs for. But some other part of me starts to stir. I look at her, and see, in her eyes, the loathsome thing I have become. My heart drops with unexpected disappointment. What did I think she would feel? And why would I care? Still, I push my Dead feeding instincts back, and give in to the draw towards Life I'm suddenly feeling while next to her.

"Ju-lie," I repeat softly.

After a moment she seems to realize I'm not going to kill her.

"You can talk?" she finally asks.

I nod. Oh, right. It matters if I answer. "Yes, I…can," I enunciate carefully.

"I don't understand. How do you know my name? Where's Perry?" she demands.

I shake my head. My limited speaking ability isn't up to answering that question. His body is in me, yes, but his memories are in me, too.

"You're wearing his clothes. Yet," and she reaches out to touch them, "they're not torn. There are no holes. How did you get them?"

How can I tell her that he took them off, before walking into our enclosure?

"You were in the holding pen, weren't you?" she asked. "That's the last place he was seen."

Finally a question I can answer with a nod, so I nod.

She stares at me, and then looks down at her hands. "They said he was walking slowly when he left. Did he leave, or did you?"

Another question I could answer. "I…left. His…clothes."

Her eyes began to tear up.

"How?"

"Removed them…then…" here I motioned with my hands, opening an imaginary gate in front of me "…came…to us."

"How is that possible? Why would he do that?" she asked softly.

Using my index finger and thumb like a gun, I mimic Perry's actions, putting the gun in his mouth, removing it, and then opening the gate again.

"He wanted to die, didn't he?" she said slowly.

Well, I'm not sure he wanted to die right at that moment, I thought, but I did see something in his face that made me think he was ready to die. I was just the…catalyst, I guessed. No, I killed him. I gave him the bite that sent him to us.

Julie dropped her face into her hands and started sobbing. Clumsily, I put my arm around her, and patted her shoulders. She flinched, but kept crying, eventually lying down on the red blanket, exhausted.

I heard the sound of something being tossed at the wall. I crept to the edge, not letting go of Julie's hand, and looked over. M was back in the parking lot below me, throwing rocks at the wall. He was taking a big risk, I thought, coming back in near daylight. He had a long rope in one hand.

Now how was he going to get that up to me?

I heard a movement behind me, and saw Julie had come to look over the roof's edge next to me. "Is that your friend?" she asked, surprised. "You have a friend?"

I nodded.

"How does he know you're here?"

I shrugged. "Looking…I guess…"

"Is he like you?" she wondered, more thinking aloud than talking to me. But why would she talk to me, really? I'm Dead, after all.

I looked at her, waiting for her to clarify what she meant. It felt…good somehow to be next to her. And I realized that I hadn't felt good in a very long time.

"Can he talk?" she asked excitedly.

I nodded, and then looked back down at M. He was looking up, holding one hand over his eyes as if to shade them. "Does she… have friend?" he was saying, then pointing to himself. That was M, always on the look-out for the ladies. Fortunately, Julie was looking behind us just then, starting at the trap door, and missed his question. I shook my head at him, before looking back at her.

When I looked over the wall again, M gave me a thumbs-up sign and started to shuffle off, taking his rope with him, pointing to the rising sun as he left. I understood. He was signaling the old saying about "survive to fight another day". Or night, in our case.

I turned to Julie, who had taken a seat on the red blanket I had spent the night on. She looked so puzzled. "I don't understand this. I don't know why you haven't tried to kill me. But you're my link to Perry, somehow. Of that, I am certain."

Thinking of Perry, I pulled the ear plugs out of my pocket, and held one out to her. She reached out and took it, puzzled. I selected one of the songs under "Julie's Playlist," a song called "Leave Out All the Rest," by Linkin Park. When I had been listening to it last night, I wondered about the tired look on Perry's face. Her comments, about not being surprised that he would choose to die, seemed to make this song appropriate.

When my time comes /

forget the wrong I've done /

help me leave behind some /

reasons to be missed…

"Perry," I say, pointing to the little music machine.

She listened for a minute, then turned and looked at me. "What are you?" she breathed.

I shrugged, as I was no longer completely sure myself.

"Well, whatever else you are, you are my link to Perry," she said firmly.

Yes, I was. And while it was better she didn't know exactly how, this link was deeper than she thought…

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Also – please note, I have started using my story Seeking Life as a place to sketch out characters for this story. All of the characters, beginning with Chapter 3 of Seeking Life, will feed into this story. (I'm not sure on the Boney soldier yet.)


	6. Chapter 6 - Julie's House

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 6 – Julie's house

I got a pang of something like sadness watching M disappear among the houses. He had risked a lot, coming so close to the city walls, looking for me. However, I couldn't watch him for long, as Julie turned to me, saying, "We can't stay up here forever, you know."

I nodded, as I did know, and then remembered – try to talk. "Yes," I answered sadly. Great, a natural conversationalist.

Stepping away from the guardrail, she started to go back to the trap door. I grabbed her wrist, not wanting to let her leave me behind. She surprised me by twisting in my grip so that she was holding my hand.

"Come on. We need to go back down, so I can figure this out," she said. "But we've got to get back. They'll start looking for me soon, and they're already looking for you. I mean," she shook her head, "they're looking for Perry."

I nodded and started after her.

We slowly went down the ladder, and made our way back to the small utility room at the foot of the ladder. After we got back into the main stadium corridor, she replaced the loose boards covering the doorway.

"How did you find this place?' she asked, turning to me.

It was complicated – a mix of Perry's memories and her scent led me to it. But that was going to be hard for me to communicate, so I just shrugged.

"Right," she replied. She started back into the city, and as I started to follow her, she suddenly stopped.

"Put your visor down, or someone will see you're not Perry," she whispered urgently, looking to the right and left.

I quickly pulled down the visor, as she suggested. It made things a bit darker, but I could follow her easily enough. Her hair made her stand out. And of course, I could smell her.

Just as I had noticed yesterday morning while I was in the enclosure, the city was quiet in the early morning. We wove our way through the narrow streets, only meeting a few people. Julie did the talking when necessary, and I just stood, holding the gun against my shoulder the way I recalled Perry doing when he was on guard.

Finally, we stopped at something that looked like a house, though it was extremely narrow, only a few yards wide. It went straight up. She opened the door and led me inside.

"Dad's not here. He's out for a few days, but you can't stay. We need to get you back to your friend. Maybe I can get us on a salvage…"

Her voice began to fade as one of Perry's memories shot through my brain like fireworks, even without my having consumed any of his.

oooo

My name is Perry Kelvin. I am 16 years old. I've been in this city for a year now. Soon after I got here, I fell in love with the beautiful girl sitting across the aisle from me, Julie Grigio.

Today we're in class, learning how to assemble, and clean, and operate a variety of guns. We are supposed to know how to handle any type, in case we're on salvage, get cut off, and have to use what's in the house or office building as our own weapon. I force myself to look at the cold metal in my hands, but my mind keeps going back to the warm girl sitting across from me.

She's Colonel Grigio's daughter. I am told she resembles her mother more than him, but I guess he used to be pretty hip. I've heard he was a rock musician at one point in his life, and that he swept Julie's free-spirited, bohemian mother off her feet at a young age.

That must have been a long time ago. He looks…stern and hard now.

I try to imagine how he went from musician to this strict, driven man. It puzzles me, but I begin to think this transformation may be necessary. It must have been done to protect Julie. He lost his wife…is this what I would become if I lost Julie?

She glances over at me and smiles, that smile that seems to bring sunshine into this room where we are being drilled on.

oooo

The moment passes, and I realize Julie is staring at me. I just shrug apologetically, and we enter the house. It is entry hall is strangely empty, having the feel of a deserted office building. The entire floor is bright but void of furniture or decoration, other than light fixtures. They must have decided to leave the first floor empty in case they needed to barricade themselves inside the upper floors of the house if the city was breached.

As we go up the narrow staircase, the house begins to feel more inhabited, with rugs on the floor and the occasional photo on the wall. She smiles as she catches me looking at one of the photos, a shot of a smiling young man and woman, and soon she opens the door to a room.

For a moment, I'm stunned at the explosion of color and life emanating from this room. The walls are each painted a different color. The wall immediately opposite the open door, painted yellow, is blank. It stands in stark contrast to the others, which are covered with various objects. I start to step in, but have to almost climb on piles of clothes on the floor.

As we enter, though, I freeze when I hear another voice coming from inside the room. "Julie?" a voice says quietly.

Julie spins around, startled, but sighs with relief when she spots a brown-haired girl sitting on the bed. . "Nora, you startled me," she says to the stranger. "You're still here?"

"Yeah, but I can see that maybe it's time for me to go," says Nora, smiling as she looks between Julie and me.

"No, wait," Julie says. "Is something wrong? Is that why you're here?"

"Just got bored with the scene in study hall. None of the guys were hitting on me. Gotta know this," she holds up a book with a familiar-looking face on it, giving it a wave, "for tomorrow. Gray's Anatomy, Chapter 2, Osteology. It's all about the bones, baby!"

She climbs off the bed and weaves around us to leave the room

"See ya." Then she pauses in the hall. "And Perry? You should really take a shower. I saw you standing by the pen yesterday, and I gotta tell you, you really smell rank. You actually smell like them." She laughs and takes off down the stairs, moving gracefully as she skips down two at a time.

With Nora gone, Julie and I look at one another for a few seconds.

Julie finally breaks the silence. "She's right. You should take a shower. It's in there," she said, pointing to a door down the hall.

I go down the hall into a bathroom, and stand outside the shower. Julie follows me to the doorway, and then comes in.

"You need help with the showerhead? I'm guessing you haven't seen one of these in a while," she laughs. She demonstrates how to work the cold and hot water levers, and shows me how to pull the curtain closed, with the base inside the shower stall. She then points out the soap and shampoo. Soap is a small rectangular bar, sitting on a shelf. The shampoo, used to wash hair, is kept in a bottle that sits on the edge of the bathtub. So much I had forgotten.

I nod, and she leaves the room, pulling the door closed behind her.

I remove my clothes, turn on the water, and get in the shower.

I haven't bathed…since I died. I stand under the showerhead, feeling the water flow over me, watching years of accumulated grime washing down the drain at my feet. Blood, some of it my own, but mostly my human victims', and other gore flows away, leaving me feeling almost purified, as if in some kind of ritual. It occurs to me that part of the ritual was simply participating in a normal human activity. For a few moments, I wonder if just being among the Living, trying to walk and pass myself off as one of them, is starting to restore my humanity. That doesn't make sense, of course. I look towards the closed bathroom door. It's Julie. She's what is restoring me. How this is working, I do not know. The only thing I am sure of is that I can't let her go.

As I pick up the soap, I give it a sniff. It smells flowery, just like Julie. I rub it all over, feeling "girly" as M used to call me. I smile remembering M, how he would say, "Such a girl," when I cleaned myself up after a hunting trip. I hope he found shelter, and that the soldiers didn't catch him while he was lingering so close to the city walls.

Once I'm done, I realize that don't have any clean clothes to put on. Unsure of what to do, I wrap a towel around my waist and walk back to Julie's bedroom. When I peek in, I see Julie sitting at her desk, eating something.

"All clean? Good. Now we just need to work on getting you some clothes. Did you want some?" she asks, gesturing to the plate on her desk.

I stare for a moment at her luminous blue eyes before I respond by shaking my head.

"Didn't think so, but it's just polite to offer," she replied. "Ummm..are you hungry?"

"No," I say out loud. _I just ate your boyfriend_, I think to myself.

"How to get you out of here, out to your friend," she mutters to herself. "Got it!"

She picks up a phone. "Hey, Paul. You guys got a salvage later today? I want to go. I need to get out of here…. Need to feel busy and useful, you know. ..Yes? Put Perry and I down. See, you won't have to worry about protecting me….Kiss kiss, Bye. See you in a few hours."

"OK," she says, turning to me. "Here's the plan. We're going on a salvage. You stay here and wait for me. I'm going over to Perry's to get you some of his clothes. Let's hope this works."

She darted out the door, and I sat down on the bed, still wearing only the towel.

I lay back, staring at the ceiling. There are model airplanes hanging from it, and I realize I'm seeing some kind of pattern worked onto the ceiling itself. It's…stars? On her bedroom ceiling? _How unique_, I think. I look at each of her walls in turn, staring at the various objects she has pinned to three of the four walls. One wall is yellow, and it is the only one without decoration. The others three are red, white and black. Each seems organized around a theme, but I leave figuring out the organizing principal for each for later, because as soon as I'm sure Julie's gone, I pull out a piece of Perry's brain and put it in my mouth.

Ooooo

We're in Julie's room. Her Dad is out, so we sneak in after class. Julie's room is like Julie, I think. It's an amazing place, a riotous mess of things, but full of boundless energy. Hey, wait. Who's that on the bed? R? Is that you?

Startled, I look up. _Are you talking to me? This should be your memories_

Well, apparently, since I'm in your head, you're creeping in.

_But I don't want to see me. I want to see you,_ I think.

Tough, Perry replies. Seems we're now a team inside your head. If you go out on a salvage, are you prepared to use a gun on your friends, to keep her safe?

Stunned, I nod my head.

oooooo

The moment fades, and soon I hear the door downstairs open and close, and footsteps hurrying up the stairs. Julie must be back. I sit up and finger comb my damp hair out of my eyes. Realizing that I'm still on her bed, I get up and take a seat at her small desk, stepping over the colorful mounds of clothes on her floor.

Then it suddenly hit me. What if this wasn't Julie? And I'm sitting here in her room, clearly a corpse, since my gray skin with all my unhealed wounds are on full display.

I look around, trying to find a place to hide, worried that I might have to kill someone to keep from being discovered, and that someone could mean killing one of her friends. If they didn't kill me first.

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	7. Chapter 7 - Meeting the General

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 7 – Meeting the General

_Then it suddenly hit me. What if this wasn't Julie? And I'm sitting here in her room, clearly a corpse, since my gray skin, covered with all my unhealed wounds, is on full display. _

_I looked around, trying to find a place to hide, worried that I might have to kill someone to keep from being discovered, and that someone could mean killing one of her friends. If they didn't kill me first._

I was a worried that her friend might have returned. As I heard the footsteps pause in the hallway outside the room, I tensed up, and and prepared to slip under the bed or inside of a closet.

Fortunately, it was Julie. She knocked on the open door before entering with a stack of clothes. "I wanted to make sure you were decent," she smiled. "Perry's house was empty. He lost his Dad a few weeks ago, so it was easy enough to get in. I grabbed a few of his things and also a few of his Dad's. See if any of these fit."

She handed me a gray pair of slacks and a white button-down shirt. I took them down to the bathroom and clumsily pulled them on. They weren't a perfect fit, but were close enough. As I looked in the mirror, it occurred to me that I looked different in these new colors. I suddenly realized that I had been wearing the same clothes since I died. It was definitely time for a change.

After tucking the shirt tail into the pants, I returned to Julie's room, and put the flak jacket and other gear on as Julie put on her gear.

After she finished putting on her gear, she helped me adjust the jacket and helmet so that they sat more smoothly. Giving me the once over, she smiled. "It worked. You look better now."

Then she leaned forward and sniffed in my direction. "You know what? You don't really smell dead. I mean, I know you just took a shower, but…you don't have that usual corpse smell. By the way, what's your name? I mean, somehow you know I'm Julie, but yours?"

"I'm…R…" I struggled, hoping this time my name would appear on my lips, as if by just virtue of having said her name aloud, I would have remembered my own. No such luck.

"R?" she asked.

I nodded my head, slowly, feeling downcast and defeated for some reason.

"No, don't feel down, we'll figure it out together," she exclaimed. "Let's see. Robert?"

I shook my head.

"Richard? Reginald? Roberto? Rafael?" After each new name, I waited a second, and then shook my head. None of these were right.

"I feel like I need to call you something. How about Archie, for now?"

I shook my head. "I like…R," I said softly.

"R, huh?" she replied with a smile, cocking her head to one side.

I nodded. Her smile was infectious. I felt as if I were trying to smile, but it wasn't working well.

"OK then R, here's the plan," she said, sitting on her bed, looking at me seriously. "We're going to go out there together, go on the salvage, and at some point during the salvage, we'll separate from the others. I'll fire my gun and run back to the group. I will tell them that you, or rather, Perry was killed, and I escaped. You find your friend. Ready?"

I looked at her sadly, because the truth was that no, I wasn't ready. I didn't want to separate. Something inside of me was stirring, and I didn't want to lose that feeling.

"Ready," I answered.

Julie looked at me for a moment, tilting her head to one side, as if thinking. "You know," she said slowly, "I almost feel like I should let you meet Rosy. I think he would be interested in what's going on with you. Maybe he would have a better idea than me. I wonder…"

Just then the door downstairs opened. Julie's head whipped in the direction of the stairs as we heard heavy footsteps coming towards the second floor. She signaled me to put down my visor, which I did, just as an older man in a drab, olive uniform entered the doorway of her room.

"Julie," he said to her. "Kelvin," he said, addressing me. "I hear you're going on a salvage this afternoon?"

I nodded once.

"That's good. We need to restock medical supplies as well as classroom supplies. No liquor this time, please," he said sternly.

I simply nodded my head again, and he seemed satisfied.

"Well, stay safe. If you go out at 14:00, you should be back by dinner. I hear it's lentils and rice, your favorite, Julie," he said, almost smiling.

Julie grimaced, but moved to give him a hug. He hugged her back, though it seemed forced and unnatural. The man himself was very stiff, I thought. With his long, lean face and balding head, I could almost imagine him a Boney. I shook my head to clear it of such a thought.

"Oh, and Julie? There's a slight odor in this room. Almost…a corpse smell?" observed the General.

"Yeah, well, we need to wash the clothes Perry was wearing," Julie replied, glancing at me anxiously. "He took a shift of guard duty down at the enclosure, as Jay wasn't feeling well."

The General, who had been leaving, wheeled around upon hearing this, turning to face Julie again. "Jay wasn't feeling well after guard duty? Was he bitten?"

"Dad, no…he had a sore throat, please…" Julie pleaded.

But the General was already on his walkie-talkie. He pushed a button, and we could hear static as a man's voice picked up. "Rosso? It's Grigio….I want Jay Benton checked on ASAP. He wasn't feeling well after guard duty…I don't care who saw him. I want him in med tent, with possible quarantine."

Julie's eyes were starting to fill with tears, tears she was fighting to hold back

After he clicked off the walkie-talkie, she said, "Dad. Was that necessary?"

"Absolutely. I've had the feeling all day that there is a Dead loose in the city. It's creepy, but somehow I think it's true. It's almost like…well, your protection is foremost for me. " He took her face in his hands. "I just want to keep your safe. You're all I have left. Without you…I don't know what would happen to me."

Funny thing was, I think I knew exactly what would happen to him without Julie. I think he would turn into a Boney, and maybe he wouldn't even have to die to do it. His eyes were flat and almost black. They were barely human.

Our conversation was interrupted by a knock on the front door downstairs, and the General went down to answer it. I could hear some talking and wanted to get closer, but Julie motioned me to stay where I was. Even though I was upstairs, I could tell something about this newcomer. He had a warm, feeling voice, and he sounded concerned about this boy Jay Benton. It was obvious that he and the General were engaged in some kind of an argument as Julie and I leaned over the bannister, listening in.

Soon I heard the two men leaving. As they left, she called down to them, "Good-bye, Dad. Good-bye, Rosy. See you later?"

So that was Rosy, whom the General called Rosso. Rosy was someone I liked without ever having seen him. The General, on the other hand, worried me. A lot.

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	8. Chapter 8 - Dog Problems

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

And I'm not Dead myself, though sometimes I feel awfully tired.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 8 – Dog Problems

After the General and Rosso left, Julie quietly exhaled a sigh of relief. She turned and walked back into her room, looking at me with her startling blue eyes, eyes that now appeared strained with sadness.

"My Dad wasn't always like that," she began. Then she stopped.

She sat down on the bed, pulling up her legs beneath her, and I brought over a chair, hauling it over the clothes. I decided to ask her about her multi-colored walls, to break the silence.

"Red?" I asked her pointing to a wall painted bright red, though the red base was almost obscured by a riotous collection of bright posters and other memorabilia.

She laughed, a beautiful sound that seemed to light up the room, its sound waves seeming to still ripple after the laugher itself was gone. "That's my music wall," she replied. "Concert posters, places and events I can only dream about. Dad was a musician, you know, at one point. It brings life into the room, I think."

_You bring life into the room, into whatever room you enter_, I thought. But what I said, after tapping my chest was, "I like…music…"

"Really?" she exclaimed excitedly. "Well, you certainly figured out the MP-3 player! What do you like?" She bounded over to a portable CD player, and looked up at me expectantly.

How could I tell her that I could no longer read? I mean, I am sure I used to be able to read, but now…the letters just slipped away from me, refusing me access to the worlds of meaning locked behind their orderly arrangements. I tapped at one of the posters on the wall. The bright colors and simple yet effective design made me think it was one of the 1960's music posters, maybe a Woodstock poster.

"Hendrix?" she asked.

"Foxy…Lady," I replied.

She blushed, and looked back at her music machine, fiddling with the dials, and flipping open a panel.

I turned my attention to another wall. The simple arrangement of this wall posed a dramatic contrast to the riot of color on the red wall across the room, as its decoration consisted of a single photo tacked against a stark black background.

"Black?" I asked.

She looked at the lone photo on the wall. "Wow. You sure know where to point. That's her, the reason Dad's like that."

I peered more closely at the photo. It was a small snapshot of a woman, blonde like Julie, but somewhat older.

"My Mom," Julie said.

"Beautiful," I replied softly.

Julie giggled. "You know the right thing to say. Well, once she left, Dad started to change."

Had Julie realized he was becoming a Boney? I wondered. "How…long…?"

"It's been a few years since I last saw her," she said, appearing to reply to the issue of her mother's departure as opposed to her father's change.

I bit my lip, frustrated.

Fortunately, she continued. "But he started shutting down right after she left. Becoming more…interested in building walls and beefing up security, more than in the people he was supposed to be trying to protect."

She looked at me, as if waiting for my reaction. I nodded.

"Yeah, well, things got a bit better, for a while at least, after Perry Kelvin and his Dad got here. Some of the buildings had been collapsing after heavy rains. You might have noticed they're kind of…unstable. So while Mr. Kelvin wanted to start working on them right away, tearing down the unstable houses and replacing them, Dad convinced him to just stabilize them using the cables. See?"

I looked out her window. I hadn't noticed the thick ropes of wire before, as they were several stories from the ground. But on examination, I saw that a complex system of cables was somehow supporting the random-looking structures.

"Interest…ing" I managed to get out. I looked down, frustrated at my inability to express my innermost thoughts. I wanted to ask how Mr. Kelvin set these up. How had he ever had the idea in the first place? And what had the General wanted him to do instead?

"Once Mr. Kelvin stabilized the buildings," Julie continued, "Dad got him involved with digging a tunnel between our dome and the next closest fortress, called it the Goldman Dome." She sighed and sat back down. "We're lucky to have another group so close to us, actually. There were crews working digging from both domes, and they were just about to meet in the middle when the tunnel collapsed. Mr. Kelvin died, and so did some of the other workers. Work hasn't resumed on it since, as the construction workers claim that some of their former colleagues who didn't make it out alive were changed, and still walk the tunnel."

The workers were right about some of their colleagues being converted to Dead. I had seen the new Dead milling about in the city. Only one had made it out to the airport, though. He had fallen in with us on one of my hunting expeditions, and followed us back when we were through. It was clear he was recently turned, as he was still wearing his construction hat and tool belt, and was still covered in the dirt he must have dug through trying to escape the collapse.

"It was right after his father's death that Perry started shutting down as well. But enough sad stuff. There is too much of that everywhere. Back to music talk!"

Julie prattled a little more about her music, and then played a few songs for me. We sat and listened in companionable silence, while I stared outside her windows, looking at the odd assemblage of unstable buildings being supported by the aerial gridwork of cables. I wanted to ask her how they figured out how to lay them out, where to attach them, and all sorts of other questions, but was struggling with how to phrase my question, limited as I was by my almost child-like speech abilities.

Soon Julie looked at her watch, and declared it was time to leave for the salvage.

So I put down my visor, and we left the house, making our way through the narrow passageways between the rickety houses, trampling across the asphalt, mud, and occasionally AstroTurf. As we walked, I looked up at the cables above us, wondering again how long they could continue their work of supporting the buildings that sheltered this small population of surviving humans.

I also reflected on the general atmosphere in the city. Somehow, from the outside, I had expected it to be…more alive in here. Happier, more upbeat. These were, after all, the Living. But this fortress city, filled with unstable structures, was marked by sadness and worry. The few people we met looked at us warily. They were dressed in work clothes for the most part, drab overcoats over gray denim, their work boots muddy and scuffed. Most of those we met passed seemed to pass one another in silence, only occasionally exchanging brief greetings.

I realized that what I had expected to find within these wall was an oasis filled with vibrant, happy people. I thought I would be surrounded by the sounds of children's laughter and people talking, chattering at one another. A blue sky above, containing a sun that shone down on green grass below. These fortress walls should have contained a Garden of Eden. I felt angry at them. After all, they were Living! They should be enjoying the experience. They could read; they knew their names. They could have meaningful conversations; create things with their hands. All the things the Living could do that I could barely remember at this point in my existence, and all things I missed.

Yet life inside these walls appeared dreary, barely carried on at subsistence levels. The residents really must think they are at the end of time.

A few times I was so distracted by these thoughts that I bumped into Julie.

"Hey, eyes on the road, R! We can't afford to fall down out here," she whispered.

"OK," I replied, though a few moments later my eyes were drawn up to Perry's father's legacy, the intricate network of cables that kept the buildings standing.

After a little while, Julie paused and pointed between the buildings to the fortress wall. I could see a couple of bulldozers parked by a barred gate. It appeared that not much activity had happened taken place there recently, as there were large bins covered with gray tarps by the earth moving equipment, with green weeds were sprouting up around the tires.

"That's our end of the tunnel to the Goldman Dome," she whispered to me.

I stared at it, thinking about the Living who lost their lives below ground a mile or so away, as the earth collapsed in on them. I shuddered, thinking about it. I couldn't remember my own death, but thought it must have been fast as I had been changed. But their deaths…being slowly suffocated by dirt, possibly waiting for help? It was horrible to think about.

Distracted, I bumped into Julie again.

"Stay focused. We're almost there," she whispered as she put out a hand to steady me. I grabbed her hand to keep from falling, relishing its warmth and softness before releasing it.

But our movement seemed to have attracted attention. Suddenly a dog started barking. Dogs were not good, as they could pick up our scent. Julie and I froze in our tracks as I looked around for the animal. I quickly spotted him. In addition to the guards stationed along the watch towers that dotted the top of the wall, there were soldiers walking the inside of the perimeter. One member of this ground crew had a German shepherd on a leash, and the dog was barking, pulling his handler in my direction. The soldier had his walkie-talkie out and was calling someone, staring straight at us.

Within a minute, two soldiers turned a corner under the eaves of one of the buildings. As they approached, Julie stood up straight, smiling at them as they walked up to us.

"Hey, Dave," she said, greeting the two approaching men. "What's up?"

"Something's got the dog in a snit," answered the one who must have been Dave as the second man looked over at the dog handler and then back at us. "We always have to check it out. Did you pass anybody on the way here?"

Julie shook her head. "Perry and I didn't see many people. Lunch time, you know?"

"I don't know what he picked up," Dave replied. "They've brought some more zombies through here over the past few days for the school. Maybe one of them dropped a hand or something on their way over. The soldiers get kind of rough sometimes, you know?"

The second man laughed, and I gave an involuntary shiver.

"Hey, Perry." asked the second man.

Not good, I thought. Perry must have known this man and…

Julie quickly came to my rescue. "We're going on the 2:00 salvage, John" she interjected, saving me from having to respond.

"Yeah? Getting out of the city?" John replied. "Well, it's something to do. Get the Post Commander to give you some extra ammo, though. The guys up top saw a hunting party working the city the day before yesterday. Though they sent out a crew as quickly as they could, but there was only one survivor. They did bring a zombie back with them."

I clearly remembered that, as I was the zombie they had brought back. I wondered what they would think if they realized that the zombie they were referring to was standing in front of them. Actually, I knew exactly what they would do. They would just shoot me in the head. I held my ground, forcing myself not to shudder with fear.

"Yeah, and the high school kids have probably already cut him up on one of the tables," commented Dave. "Bob Banner's doing his Basic Anatomy class again, and he needed subjects. Well, back to our rounds. Keep your eyes open, because the dog's still hyper, see that?"

I definitely saw that. The dog was still pulling at his handler, trying to get to me. We had to get to the gate, and get out of the city quickly, before my cover was blown and I ended up either dead, or on one of Mr. Banner's dissection tables.

PLEASE REVIEW. I WILL SEND A PREVIEW OF THE NEXT CHAPTER TO ALL REVIEWERS.

To the reviewers of the last chapter – sorry, but the preview I sent of the Salvage will the next chapter posted. I ended up expanding this chapter a little bit. Right now I have a total of 21 chapters written, and probably 2-3 left to write.


	9. Chapter 9 - The Salvage

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 9 – The Salvage

We arrived at the main gate without further incident, though behind us dog had never stopped barking. One of the guards from the watch post, who Julie identified as the Post Commander, was reading from a list as we walked up. "Perry," he called out, "check in."

Julie froze at this order, but I just nodded. That gesture had successfully gotten me through much of the city, after all. When he didn't hear an answer, the soldier looked up from his paperwork, and I nodded again, while shifting my gun to my other shoulder as I had seen Perry do.

After gazing at me for a long moment, he shrugged, and went back to calling out names from his checklist. In addition to Julie, there were five others. Four were boys, and there was one other girl. No one looked older than twenty.

Once the post commander had finished reading from his checklist of names for the salvage, he set his clipboard down and stood in front of us, hands behind his back. "OK. I see you're supposed to be going to Sector 4, to the warehouse on Fourth and Main.

I would suggest a change of destination. One of the teams on reconnaissance found the front doors open last week, and the unit contents looked pretty well strewn about. There must still be pockets of looters in the city who didn't make refuge. The unit reported that the goods appeared to have been exposed to the elements, and didn't think there were any salvageable materials left. I'm going to update the logs."

Two of the team members, the young woman and one of the men, stirred restlessly as he gave us this information. It looked like they had wanted to go to this location for some reason. The Post Commander gave them a long look, and they stood back to attention.

Julie murmured to me, "You could still find booze at that warehouse."

Then the Post Commander continued his instructions. "In the meantime, I would recommend checking out Sector 2 instead. There are some offices at the Bronson Building at 14th and Orchard that haven't been checked out yet. The last crew to visit the building got the elevators working, and left the key at the guard desk.

Just be careful out there today. We've had sightings of Boneys again."

Boneys. Those were the truly Dead, the lost ones. Some of us transformed into Boneys instead of lapsing into a final Death. These beings seemed to rule our world, never speaking aloud, but appearing to move in concert, as if sharing a common mind.

I shot my eyes over at Julie under my visor, tensing up. I was going to have to let go of her early, to keep her safe.

While I was thinking, the post commander finished giving his pep talk, the guards opened the front gate, and our group of seven walked through it quietly.

We were now outside the fortress, a place I had only dreamed about being the day before as I paced the pen with the other Dead. My heart dropped as I realized I hadn't found a way to go back for them. My former cellmates, soon to be walking fodder to be used to train the Living for expeditions like this one that we were going on. If they didn't end up on the dissection table. I glanced back over my shoulder, torn that I couldn't go back, but I knew it was impossible now.

I looked over a Julie, watching her push her hair out of her face. The wind had picked up a bit, and it must have been a cold one, as the other Living started pulling on their gloves. Once past the no man's land of obstacles set up to slow an attack in front of the gate, the group picked up their pace. I moved as quickly as I could, but it wasn't fast enough.

The group leader, a heavyset man named Marlowe, finally called me out on my pace. "Crap, Kelvin. What's going on?"

Julie came to my rescue by chiming in, "I'm a little tired, so he's keeping pace with me. But I wanted to go on this salvage. Needed to feel useful, you know?" She reached for my hand, and I took it automatically. Since she was now wearing gloves, I couldn't feel her Living warmth, and I missed it.

The guard eyed our clasped hands for a moment thoughtfully. Finally I shuffled my gun from one shoulder to the other, shifting my feet at the same time, mimicking Perry as I had done with the Post Commander. This gesture seemed to reassure him, and I heard him mutter, "Jeez. Love birds on an op. Not a good idea."

We soon reached one of the residential parts of the city. I was familiar with this area, as I had hunted it often. The buildings all had boarded-up windows, with the boards partially removed. The fronts of the houses were graffiti stained, from two kinds of tags. One was a colorful tag, bold and often featuring a stark beauty, markings of territory from looters and gangs, now long gone. The other kind of tag, quite different, was the minimal inscription of simple words from officials, indicating they had checked the houses for survivors. Also long gone.

I examined the two types contrasting types of human lettering, as at one time they had competed on the houses, showing the attempts of the Living to impose order on their disintegrating social structure. But these battles were now in the past, the only reminders of their passing were the markings now slowly fading to the elements, just as the buildings slowly fell to ruin from disuse.

We moved more slowly, as the guard in front checked each intersection. Keeping a steady pace, I managed to keep up with the Living as they made these frequent checks.

Marlowe raised a hand in front of us sharply, signaling to wait. Everyone froze. He lifted his gun, looking down its sites at the road. We all waited to see what he had heard, assuming it to be a group of approaching Dead.

_Please don't let it be M, please don't let it be M_, was all I could think, worried sick about my long-time friend.

To my relief, Marlowe lowered his gun, and we walked on, down the ruined streets lined with rusting cars, some with their doors still open from where the Living had been dragged out to their death. Soon we saw the tall black building that was our destination.

It was an eight-story office building, with glass windows for walls on the lower elevations. Several of the downstairs windows were cracked and partially broken out. At one time it had been beautiful, a graceful black structure rising in the middle of a small commercial distract. Now, it was just an empty shell.

I had tried searching that building myself on hunting expeditions, but found the fire escape doors on the first level impenetrable, and all of the elevators in the lobby locked down.

But Marlowe had clearly been briefed on both the location of the elevator key and the access codes for the emergency generators needed to operate them. As we entered the lobby, filled with shattered glass and other detritus that had blown in over the years of vacancy, he went behind the front desk, and fiddled with a few switches. Soon we heard a wheezing, clanking noise from above us, and I realized he must have turned on a back-up generator.

_Not smart,_ I thought. That sound would draw us, the Dead, like flies. _This place will soon be crawling with any Dead in the area._

On the other hand, I wouldn't be able to climb the stairs, so I was glad that he decided to use the elevators. As he unlocked the elevator bank, I heard a familiar bing, and a door slid open. We entered the cab, and watched the door close again. They closed a bit too slowly, I thought. A Living could probably use it to escape one of us, but could never hope to escape a Boney this way. With their speed, a Boney would be able to stick one its hands in the door before it closed, the Living trapped inside the car.

We rode up in silence, everyone letting their guns hang drop in front of them as they relaxed for the first time since leaving the Dome. Following suit, I pointed mine down as well.

As we got to the sixth floor, Marlowe pointed down the hall. "Perry, you and Grigio go to the lab on the left. Check for meds in suite 6400, which was a dentist office. They sometimes have antibiotics, and they usually have pain meds. We'll check out several offices down this hallway. One was a distributor for health food, and they might have some nutrition bars or other useable foodstuffs. Keep your radios on, move fast, and let's plan to be done in 20 minutes, tops."

Julie and I headed down our assigned hallway, but as soon as the other group went into one of the suites, Julie opened the stairwell door, and we started down the stairs.

I was slow, but Julie surprised me by getting on the banister. "Behind me," she said quietly.

I put my arms around her, and we slid down to the next landing. We made it down several flights this way, must faster than if I had walked. It was actually fun, and I found myself almost laughing.

However, we must have been missed. Our radios crackled as we opened the door to the first floor lobby. "Perry, come in!" I heard Marlowe bark.

Julie shot her gun into the air into the stairwell, and then walked to the lobby with me after propping the stairwell door open with her walkie-talkie.

At the front desk she stopped, reached out for my hand, and gave it a squeeze. "I guess this it, then. Go find your friend and your home. Drop your gun, go. Do it now," she said.

I set my gun down on the ground, and clumsily patted her hand with mine. So much I wanted to say, and none of it would come out. So I just looked at her, trying to memorize every feature of her face. I noticed with a pang that she seemed to look worried for me. I didn't want to leave her, but I knew it was time.

Just then I saw movement behind her. It was M and a small group of the Dead. As they shuffled towards us, I noticed that M's clothes were more torn that they had been the last time I had seen him, and he had appeared to have recently taken a hit to his left leg. He was dripping black blood. He was also between Julie and the stairwell door back to the upper floors.

As M approached, so did four Boneys. They came around the corner of the building, a little behind M's group. This could only be trouble. Julie had brought me out to safety, and now was separated from her salvage team.

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	10. Chapter 10 - The Road to the Airport

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 10 – The Road to the Airport

As M's group made their way across the lobby towards us, I realized that Julie was obscured from their sight by the wall of the elevator bank. So far, the approaching Dead were only able to see me. I gestured for Julie to drop behind the front desk, and struggled to form a plan to save her.

As M walked up to us, I almost grinned, as I was so glad to see him. But the moment was mixed as I gestured my head towards the Boneys approaching from the other direction. I pointed to his leg and he looked at me, puzzled, but stopped in front of me, swaying. He was sniffing the air, but Julie's presence in the lobby was still partially masked by the scent of the members of the salvage team. Marlowe had been behind the desk not far from where she was hidden when he turned on the generators. That scent mask wouldn't last long, though, so I needed some sort of disguise for her. Gesturing with my head for him to look out the window, I leaned over, got some of the goop from the gash on his calf, and smeared it on Julie's face. She grimaced, but held still.

"Eyes…down," I whispered. I gestured for her to move stiffly, holding my arms and legs tense. She nodded. "Gun…down," I added. Glancing at M's leg, she realized what was going on, and her face took on a look of desperation, but she reluctantly set down her weapon.

The Boneys entered the lobby from the side door and approached us, sniffing the air suspiciously for a tense moment. But I was relieved when they finally swiveled their heads in unison as they directed their black eye holes at the elevator lobby, clearly scenting the Living on the upper floors.

They gave us a terrifying smile, and moved as one towards the elevator bank. I knew that once they saw they couldn't use the elevators, it would only be seconds before they discovered the stairwell door that Julie had propped open. Even though she was still kneeling, I could see Julie's terrified look, as fear for her friends overtook her.

Seeing the Boneys, the rest of M's group quickly shuffled away from the elevator bank and joined us at the lobby desk. M gave them a gesture towards the street with his chin, and they began to walk past the lobby desk, passing the still kneeling Julie without seeming to notice her.

Now was my only chance to try to get her out, so I reached out my hand and pulled her to her feet. She hesitated, but followed me. I was worried about her disguise holding up, but felt I had a better chance defending her from this small group of the Dead than a group of Boneys. I pulled her next to me, then swayed a little, and was happy when she mimicked my motion.

We stood next to one another for a few seconds, swaying. If I could sweat, it would have dripped off my forehead. _This has to work_, I kept thinking. _I have to keep her safe somehow_. I felt an overwhelming sense of relief as the impromptu scent disguise did seem to work, since the Boneys zipped past us as they finished their check of the elevator bank and headed for the center of the lobby.

As soon as the Boneys had gone past us and begun their search of the lobby, Julie and I left the building and began to walk with M's group. As the other Dead opened up to admit us to their group, I noticed that they occasionally sniffed the air, puzzled. It was as if they were aware a Living was nearby, but couldn't fathom that she was so close to them. As far as I was concerned, it didn't help our disguise that Julie was overacting her part of playing a Dead just a little, moaning "out of character." I finally nudged her, mumbling "too…much." She nodded, and stopped her sound effects.

Within seconds, I heard the sound of gunfire as Marlowe's group must have come down to the lobby either in the elevator or using the stairwell. Among the staccato sounds of the bullets bouncing off of walls, I heard their frantic shouts of "Julie" and "Perry."

But a wave of Boneys appeared in the street, swarming around us and quickly surrounded the building. Looking at Julie, I knew that the only hope for her friends was if they barricaded themselves in the upper floors. If she answered their calls for her, and they came out onto the streets, it would mean their deaths. I put my finger to my lips, tapping them, signaling silence, and she nodded, terrified not only for herself, but also for her friends.

Within a few minutes, the sounds of fighting stopped, and we were re-joined by some of the Boneys. Since they came out of the building so quickly, Julie's friends must have been able to successfully barricade themselves back inside the upper floors. The Boney must not have been able to get to them or they wouldn't have been out on the street so quickly. I could only hope her friends were safe and calling for reinforcements. Still suspicious, however, the Boneys kept walking with us, their presence giving me the creeps.

The thought of Julie being with us if M's group was successful at finding a group of the Living to feed on horrified me, and I began to try to work out plans to break off with Julie if they found someone. But M seemed to pick up on my nervousness and began to lead the group out of town. He was probably hoping to shake off our Boney escort by appearing to give up his hunt. But whatever his reason, I was glad to see us heading towards the city limits. The other Dead seemed to give up hope on getting food on this hunting trip, and resign themselves to returning to their airport home.

We soon reached the edge of the ruined city and started towards the airport.

Once on the highway back to the airport, however, I worried that Julie would get thirsty, start sweating, or showing some other of being a Living. Fortunately, the day was overcast, so she was able to keep up her pretense by walking stiffly and slowly.

But after a few hours, I could tell that she was no longer forcing the dragging of her feet. She was looking bad, for a Living. Luckily for Julie, the Boneys suddenly zipped ahead of us, obeying some unseen signal, and I stopped. She halted in her tracks and dropped to the ground.

"I can't do this," she moaned, grabbing her feet and rubbing them.

Unfortunately, as soon as she hit the pavement, the other Dead surrounded her, ready to feed as they finally saw past her disguise. I pushed them all back, crouching over her protectively.

"This is…Julie." I shoved at the tall guy with the green polo shirt, the one who always came with me. "Not food," I said.

The Dead stood in a circle around us, confused. Julie curled herself in a ball, wrapping her arms around her knees, rocking.

I stood up to face them, placing one hand on the top of her head. "Not food," I repeated, pointing to Julie again.

"Up…" I urged her. "See?"

Down the road I could see another group of Boneys, moving fast. They would be on us in seconds. I had to get her back on her feet, and get her staggering again in order to keep her safe.

I looked at M, and he nodded. I pulled another finger against the wound on his leg, then pushed at it to produce more blood. I smeared it first on her face, and then on the nape of her neck and left wrist.

She wrinkled her nose, but kept a straight face.

"Up," I urged her again.

She finally saw the Boneys and got up, and we all started walking again. Fortunately, the Boneys didn't join us. Instead, they just parted and swarmed around us, like a wave moving around a rock.

"Food," muttered M to me, once they were past.

"Ju-lie…" I said back firmly.

"Hungry," was all he said. But he didn't make another move towards her, and in fact walked on her other side, effectively keeping the other Dead from getting too close.

Soon we came to an abandoned gas station with a convenience store. The garage was partially burnt out, but Julie went into the convenience store. I followed her, while the other Dead watched us with curiosity. Fortunately, they stayed outside, swaying.

Inside, there was a large water dispenser, and she filled a cup with the water, sniffed it, and quickly drank four cups in succession. She found another water bottle which she emptied after opening and sniffing it, and then filled it from the dispenser.

As for food, Julie seen thrilled to have found some Twinkies. "These last forever," she said. She also grabbed a handful of small liquor bottles, handing them to me. "Carry these?" she asked.

I nodded, stuffing them in her pocket. "Sun…block?" I asked.

She looked at me, surprised, then walked down the aisles again, and finally came back to the front carrying a baseball cap. "All the sunblock was expired," she replied.

As we went outside, I handed her water bottle to M, who put it in his pocket. Since we didn't need water, it would be suspicious if we were seen carrying it.

Satisfied that we were set for the moment, we started off again.

As sunset approached, I could see the airport. I pointed to my 747, and the exhausted Julie nodded, appearing grateful that our walk was almost over. Our faithful escorts took us to my plane, and then they all left to take their usual evening positions around the runway. All but M, who lingered to watch us walk on board.

As Julie and I reached the top of the stairs, I turned back to look at him. He gave me a wicked smile, and said, "Loverboy." I just shut the door in his face. Turning to Julie, who was looking around in confusion, I motioned her towards one of the passenger seats. "Sit…please."

She did, ripping off her boots, rubbing her feet. When she was done with her massage, she quickly twisted the cap off one of the liquor bottles, and tossed back a Twinkie with it.

Sighing in contentment as she put down the container, she said, "Maybe not nutritious, but just what I needed. Now, how do I get back?"

"Tomorrow," I said. "If safe…have car."

Julie's eyes widened, and she nearly choked on the last bite of her Twinkie. "You…have a CAR?" she asked, almost imitating our speech cadence in her surprise.

I nodded, proud. I opened one of the tiny cabin windows and pointed to it, parked at the edge of the runway near the hangar.

"That's a Mercedes convertible!" she exclaimed in excitement. "Does it run?"

I nodded again.

"Why is it kind of stuck against the passenger side of a Hummer?" she inquired, looking more closely.

"Reflexes…or brakes…bad…" I tried.

She opened another one of the tiny liquor bottles, took a swig, and then wiped her mouth off with the back of her hand. "I don't understand you, at all, sometimes. I don't get what happened out there today. Not that I'm not grateful, don't misunderstand."

I looked at her and nodded, then shrugged.

She laughed. "Somehow though, you remind me of Perry, a little more, all the time. Well, I need to get some shut eye. It's been a long day."

She paused and looked at me questionly for a moment, then finally asked, "Do you guys sleep?"

I shook my head.

"OK. Then I guess I will…" here she looked around at the crowded cabin. I went over to one of the seats and pushed the recline button, lowering it to its fully reclined position, and then got a pillow and blanket out of an overhead bin. I stood in the aisle by the seat, waiting to see if she would take up the offer.

She looked at me in amazement, shook her head, then climbed into the reclined seat and said, "Well, thank you. I see you've thought of everything."

"Airline…helped," I replied handing her the pillow and blanket.

"Thanks, really, for everything," she said, then rolled on her side, facing away from the aisle.

I sat in the aisle across from her, listening to the sound of her breathing. Slowly it became steadier, and I realized she was asleep. I envied her this simple pleasure of sleeping. I relaxed a little, closing my eyes, listening to her even breathing, while trying to recall the simple sensation of sleep. A warm feeling washed over me, in the quiet of the evening. I felt…connected, and happy. At least temporarily. I had her company for tonight, and though I would have to get her back to her world soon, I was determined to enjoy these moments in her presence.

After about an hour, once I was sure she was in a deep sleep and unlikely to wake up suddenly, I went to the cockpit for privacy. Quietly closing the door behind me, I pulled out another lump of Kelvin's brain. I put it in my mouth, savoring the feel on my tongue, waiting for the firing of neurons and the ensuing internal light show to begin.

oooo

It's a day outside of the city. I've managed to arrange a rare outing with both Julie and Nora. Somehow, Julie has forgiven us both for my drunken night spent in Nora's arms.

We're looking at the clouds, as this plague hasn't managed to take that simple pleasure from us. My rifle is lying next to me, the one inescapable sign of the times we live in. Julie is on my other side, and I'm holding her in my left arm, pulling her against my chest.

Julie leads off. "I see…a band performing." She rolls over onto her stomach, breaking my hold. "That's one thing I do miss. The shows. Why don't we form a band? We could play!"

Nora rolled her eyes. "Maybe it's because…none of us have any musical talents. But your father did, didn't he?"

Julie sits up, scooting up next to my shoulder, hugging her knees to her chest. "That was a long time ago. Perry, do you have any hidden musical talents?"

"I was taught to play the ukulele in third grade for the Hawaiian pageant," I reply.

They both giggled. "Really? That's good stuff!"

Suddenly Perry turned to me. "And you, corpse? You wanna join us? You could play drums…don't need to have an ear for that…"

Stunned, I looked back at him. "But these are your memories."

"Not anymore. Seems we're sharing real estate, now, and it's all in your brain. Try not to let the General blow it out, all over the dome, you know?"

The scene fades.

oooo

As the firings faded, and I became aware of my surroundings again, I started up in the pilot's chair, stunned. The General. The Boneys. We had seen a lot of movement on the road today. While Julie wasn't safe here, surrounded by the Dead, would she be safe back at the dome? And had Perry been giving me some kind of prophetic warning?

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	11. Chapter 11 - R's House (the 747)

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 11 – R's House (the 747)

_Suddenly Perry turned to me. "And you, corpse? You wanna join us? You could play drums…don't need to have an ear for that…"_

_Stunned, I looked back at him. "But these are your memories."_

_"Not anymore. Seems we're sharing real estate, now, and it's all in your brain. Try not to let the General blow it out, all over the dome, you know?"_

_The scene fades as I start back to reality._

I spent the next several hours watching Julie sleep. I found watching and listening to her slow, even breaths relaxing, and unconsciously I started creeping closer until I suddenly realized that I was standing over her. Startled, I almost jumped back, telling myself_, Don't be creepy. Don't let her wake up and find you staring_.

I decided to try being a hospitable host and anticipate her needs. Although it had been a long time since I had been a Living myself, I knew from having just spent time with her she would need water plus food.

Remembering that planes had galley kitchens, I wondered if there might be some still edible snacks in the back. After all, she seemed pretty excited to find those little yellow cakes, the Twinkies, at the gas station. Rooting through the tiny galley kitchen's drawers and carts, I didn't see little yellow cakes. I did, however, find metal packets with pictures of food on them, so I brought a few back to the main cabin, and carefully put them on the tray table next to her.

Next, I went over to my record collection. Frank Sinatra was my thing, but would it be hers? I suspected her kind of music was on this little musical box, the thing she called an MP3 player. She had pulled it out of her pocket and set it on the chair next to her before she went to sleep, so I carefully leaned over her sleeping body and picked it up, taking a deep breath of her sweet Living fragrance as I got close to her neck and face, the only parts not covered by the blanket. Her scent seemed to be wakening other sensations in me now, feelings of attraction and protectiveness that I hadn't felt this strongly in years.

Blinking my eyes, I pulled back quietly, and took the MP3 player back to the row with my record player. I turned it over carefully in my hands. I knew some of what was on it, as I had spent the night on the stadium roof listening to Perry's player.

As I peered through the cabin window again into the darkness, I saw that M was still outside, his distinctive outline clearly visible, showing him swaying at the foot of the stairs. Though I appreciated that he appeared to be guarding the entrance, eventually this might attract unwanted attention. I went back up to my little cockpit office so I could look at the device in peace. Sitting in my pilot's chair, I put in the earplugs and scrolled down the playlist, selecting songs at random, closing my eyes to concentrate on the melodies flowing into my ears, as I reflected on my plan to return her to the dome.

Thinking about tomorrow, I realized that one of us needed to be wounded so I could get some of our blood on her to mask her fresh Living scent. M had taken care of this yesterday, which meant it would be my turn today. After all, we didn't really experience pain, so drawing a little of my own black blood wouldn't hurt me. Much. And she needed the cover to get her back to her own, the Living. If, that is, I could stand to give her up…

Because it hurt to think about giving her up. It hurt to think about a world without her in it, to tell the truth. It was as if I was beginning to feel again, and I wasn't sure I liked it. This emotional pain was not fun.

In the middle of the night, I heard Julie stirring restlessly in her chair, so I left the sanctity of my cockpit and went back into the cabin to check on her.

She was tossing in her seat, saying, "Mom? Mom, no…"

It appeared she was having a bad dream, so I put my hand on her arm. "Ju-lie" I stuttered, and then gently shook her arm, trying to free her from the trap of her nightmare world.

She started up, not recognizing her surroundings, and I stumbled back. Slowly she calmed down. "Sorry, R. I didn't remember where I was," she whispered apologetically.

I shook my head, then said, "It's…OK. Happens."

She stared a bit longer, and then stretched, arching her back and putting both hands over her head. When she was done, she looked around the cabin groggily, and asked, "Do you think there's any food around here?"

I pointed to the little pile of airline snacks I had placed next to her while she slept.

"Oh, wow. You found something," she exclaimed. "Let's see if it's still good!"

She opened the little bottle of water I left her, taking a sniff. "This isn't great, but I'll drink it. Probably won't get a chance to die from the leached plastic, right?"

As she lifted the bottle to her lips, I said, "Keep you…safe."

She lowered it, looking at me with a strange smile. "You're OK, R." After finishing her water, she began to paw through the little metal packets, picking up each one in turn and examining it closely.

To my surprise, she added, "And somehow, I do feel safe with you."

I smiled. That meant the world to me. But then I was startled to hear Perry's voice in my head, saying, "You better keep her safe. That used to be my job."

I shook my head to clear it, giving a low growl.

Julie paused in her efforts to open one of the packages.

I smiled, and said, "Sorry. Thoughts…"

I tried to lighten the mood by taking out the MP-3 player and plugging it into the receiver I had found on one of my trips. It took a few tries, but eventually I found the right hole, and figured out how to flip on the music.

It was another one of the songs from Julie's Playlist. It was a quiet song, perfect for the middle of the night I thought. Very pretty, but kind of weird, called "Flightless Bird," by Iron and Wine. As the music and lyrics floated through the darkened cabin, Julie paused her snacking.

"Have I found you /

flightless bird/

wounded…"

As Julie listened, she started nodding her head sadly. "Yeah, that's me," she said. "Flightless, wounded bird. No more Perry, no more Mom." She bit her lip, while tears filled her eyes, but she wiped them away and then turned in her seat to me. "But for now, I got you, right?" she said softly.

I nodded, and started searching for a more upbeat song. I kept my head down so that she wouldn't see the excitement and hope in my eyes that her words had inspired in me. Because those feelings were futile, I knew that. What could a beautiful Living such as Julie see in me, a walking corpse with gray skin and eyes? She was just being kind.

Finally I gave up trying to find a song on her MP3 player, and went to my record collection, pulling out Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World." Sliding the black vinyl circle out of the cover, I place it on the on the battered wooden record player, and carefully lowered the needle. Soon, the scratchy but familiar lyrics filled the plane's cabin…

"I see trees of green / red roses too/

I see 'em bloom for me and you…and I think to myself /

What a wonderful world…"

Julie had been watching me closely as I rooted through my collection. Now she smiled, and leaned back, looking out little window at all the Dead outside, still in their evening positions, swaying and moaning. Looking through the window next to her, I realized it was a surreal scene out on the runway, as their bodies almost appeared to create some kind of weird garden, composed of talk plants blowing in an invisible breeze.

Finally she fell back to sleep, and slept soundly, without any more nightmare, until the morning. And I sat in the row across from her, relishing the poignant emotions she was awakening in me, dreading the moment I had to do my duty and return her to her own world.

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	12. Chapter 12 - Waiting at the Airport

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 12 – Waiting at the Airport, and the King of the Boneys

The next morning, I decided that we needed to risk going into the airport to search for food. The snacks I had found on the airplane were probably OK as exactly that: snacks to be consumed in the middle of the night, as Julie had done when she woke up in the previous night.

I had wanted to go alone into the terminal alone, but I was worried about leaving Julie by herself. So after she finished off three more little metal packets of food from the airplane galley, washing them down with the rest of the water from the gas station, I pointed to the terminal.

"Maybe…food…for you?" I suggested.

She came to the tiny cabin window and looked out. The runways had mostly cleared of the Dead, as they had headed inside to begin their daily routine of pacing the airport.

Julie bounced in her seat a little as she thought, drumming her fingers on the armrest of her chair, seeming worried yet excited at the prospect of going into the terminal.

"Do you think it's safe in there for me, or might the other zombies be in there as well?" she finally asked.

I cringed inwardly at the use of the word zombie, but simply said, "We…spend day…inside."

"So, it's like, your hangout spot?" she asked, tilting head to one side as she looked up at me with smile.

I nodded, melting under the power of the smile.

"Why? I mean, what's special about an airport?" she asked as she looked back out of the tiny cabin window, her messy but still beautiful hair sliding across her face.

I shrugged, longing to reach out and pull her hair back.

"Nuh-uh. Try again, shrugger! You can do better. What's the reason you stay there? Did you all die there?" she asked, getting out of her seat and going over to one of the bins between the seats, digging through my records.

I shrugged again, not knowing the answer. Realizing she hadn't heard me, she looked over towards my seat. I repeated my shrug, and she shook her head. "I guess that's the big question, isn't it? What happened? What happened to you all that you found yourselves like you are?" She paused in her perusal of my collection, leaning back on her heels. Finally she looked back down again.

Which was a good thing. Because if I was able to express emotion, I would have been dumbfounded at her question. But since I couldn't speak very well, I knew my shrug would work.

"You have a lot of great albums here, R. You have a lot of stuff, period! What is all this?" she asked, gesturing to all the things I brought back from my trips.

I looked around, and decided to throw that right back at her. I pointed to the small model of the solar system, a system of wires connected to balls that showed the sun, earth and other planets, hanging from my ceiling. "Like…your ceiling," I said.

She went over and looked at it, rotating the metal arms a few times. "OK, I'll give you this one. I have those stars on my ceiling, it's true. But what about all the rest of this stuff?"

"Interesting…meant something…to someone," I said. That was one of the longest phrases I had gotten out.

She plopped back down in one of the seats, and stared at me, with her chin in her hands. "You know, that's kind of profound, as well as sad," she said finally. "Yeah, all of this stuff probably meant something to someone once."

I smiled. She got it.

I walked over to one of the overhead bins, and pulled down a medium size blue suitcase covered with psychedelic flowers decals. Rolling it over to her, I said, "Clothes…for you?"

She looked at me, and then took the suitcase, pulling it behind her into the nearest bathroom.

I listened intensely, hearing rustling sounds, and the sounds of metal from behind the closed door. That suitcase, however small, was going to be difficult to manage in the tiny restroom.

After a few minutes, she came back out, closing the door behind her, saying "Well, she was a bit prissier than I was, but still…"

I was stunned at the transformation that had occurred just a few feet away from me. Julie had put on a short white linen dress, with white leggings. There must have been a hairbrush in the bag as well, because she had combed her hair. She looked like an angel. A street angel, it's true, but an angel. I gaped at her. She had been pretty before, but now? She was incandescent, and barely looked human. Too good for this plague-ridden planet.

"It's too bad the shoes don't fit," she murmured, looking down at her feet, "but she only had ballet flats, and those aren't going to work for the hike back…"

She looked up at me. "What do you think?"

"Perfect…" I stammered, and then ducked my head.

"R, are you…blushing? No, that's not possible. It's just the shadows on your face. But still, it's cute. And you want to hear the best part? That girl had packed her makeup bag in that suitcase! Shampoo, blush, eye shadow…"

In her excitement, she almost danced to the row I was sitting in. Slipping onto the seat next to me, she showed me the contents of a folded cloth bag. The bag contained a variety of small compacts and brushes, all in shiny black containers. They seemed to match.

"We haven't had this quality in years! Expensive tastes, whoever she was." She opened a compact and stared into the tiny mirror, and then pulled out one of the brushes, preparing to put some of the powder on her face.

"Can't wear…at airport," I said, stopping her hand.

"Oh, right. Should I change?" She sounded a little disappointed.

I shook my head, and pulled down a large green duffle bag. Unzipping it, I pulled out a large man's green and blue plaid shirt.

She took it and giggled. "Well, you would be a fashion expert on how to blend. Thanks, R. No reason to get this dress dirty," she finished, slipping it the shirt on over her dress.

I looked outside the window, and saw a large group of Boneys coming across the tarmac. I caught a glimpse of gold, and looking closely, it appeared their leader was at the center of the group.

I had only seen him twice before. M had pointed him out to me, right after I first met him at the airport. He had been standing in front of a large group of Boneys, and the others had been seemingly frozen, paying complete attention to him.

"That is…leader," M had grunted at the time, ducking his head. "Keep…away," he continued.

I understood, and ducked my head as well. M tapped his front tooth and gestured back to the circle of Boneys. Cautiously looking up, I took another quick glance in their direction. The leader, who was slightly taller than the others, had a prominent gold tooth, bringing a touch of metallic color to the otherwise drably colored being.

I felt as though the tall Boney was looking at me, accessing me. I started to shuffle off, and M quickly followed.

"Smart move…leaving," he grunted quietly.

Today, though, I watched as the Boneys gathered out on the runway, surrounding their leader, before splitting into three groups that dispersed in different directions. Two headed for the other terminals of the airport, and one headed north, back towards the city. I felt Julie behind me, and I moved to let her watch over my shoulder.

"That doesn't look good," she said slowly.

"No…stay in…for now," I said, looking up at her. I looked back out, wondering if I should tell her about their leader being them. Then I thought, how could I explain that? I let it go for the time being.

She nodded, biting her lip, looking afraid. I was suddenly tempted to put my arm around her in a reassuring gesture, but I didn't move quickly enough, and she stepped back into the center aisle of the plane, returning to her seat.

As I gazed at her, I decided I didn't want her to be nervous. If I only had this short time with her, I wanted her to be happy. Plus, I wanted to spend some time doing fun things with her. I hadn't really interacted with anyone besides M in years. So I got up and went to another overhead bin. After opening it, I tapped the raised door, showing her the contents. It was full of board games.

She laughed, and said, "You know, you're all right, R." She pulled a few down, and we started to play.

After a while, she got up and stretched. "I could use some music, now."

So I went over to my record player and tried to plug Kelvin's music maker into my speakers.

"Let me help," she said. After a few tries, she got the two synchronized, and music filled the cabin. We spent the rest of the day playing the board games, watching the Boneys outside, as more of the spooks came and went, forming groups at the direction of their leader, Mr. Gold Tooth.

I couldn't tell exactly what they were doing, but whatever it was, I didn't like it. They were more active than usual. That couldn't be good, especially with Julie so close at hand.

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So they didn't make it into the terminal, but they got to spend a little more time together.


	13. Chapter 13 - The Terminal

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 13 – the Terminal

The next morning, things seemed a bit quieter out on the runway. I decided for safety reasons to forgo the trip to the terminal for food, and just go straight to my car. With the increased activity I had seen in the Boneys, I didn't believe it could be safe for her here any longer on my 747. I needed to get her back to the Living.

As we started out across the tarmac to my car, we were surprised by a group of Boneys who cut across the tarmac from one of the hangers. Turning around, I simply lead Julie towards the airport terminal instead of the car. As we approached the gate, I saw a cart filled with luggage, and swiped my arm across a sharp corner of one of the carts, cutting it.

Julie's eyes opened wide with surprise, but I shook my head, signaling her to keep her face down as I stuck a finger into the fresh cut, got some of my black blood, and smeared it on her cheek and the nape of her neck. Leaning forward, I gave an exploratory sniff. She still smelled slightly human, but more like she had just been turned. Satisfied, I turned back towards the terminal and soon we reached the doors and walked inside.

It felt like months had passed since I had been gone, instead of just a few days. With Julie at my side, we started my usual, slow circuit of the airport. Surprisingly, most of the Dead I usually passed, the ones who went on my hunting trips with, weren't there.

Making my way up to the airport bar, I looked around. I was early, but there was no sign of M. Anywhere. So I headed over to his other hang-out, the women's washroom.

Julie's eyes widened as I started to enter, but I shook my head. "Friend…like my…plane," I finally got out.

"Really weird hang-out spot, R!" she exclaimed.

"It doesn't…work…with us," I said.

"Oh right, I guess. Still…" Her eyes widened at the sight of the TV set M kept on the Koala Kare baby changing station. Darting over to the videos, she picked up one after another, gasping with surprise as she turned them over in her hands.

Turning to me, she asked accusingly, "Are you sure it doesn't 'work' for you guys? These are all porn!"

"That's…just M," I said.

"Maybe he's not such a good buddy to hang with," she said, setting down the videos.

"Came…for me…in city," I reminded her.

"OK, you got me there," she stated. "But what's the plan?"

I didn't really know. "Food…for you…then wait…"

"Well, I like the first part of the plan, anyway," she replied.

We left the bathroom and went back in the terminal and continued along my usual rounds. I felt kind of pleased to show her where I passed my days, even if I couldn't describe my feelings.

Eventually we got to the storage areas for the food courts. Behind the haphazard mess of bins that had been tipped over and carts lying on their side, we saw a wall of refrigerator units. But when we opened the first one, a blast of hot, putrid air came out.

Julie turned pale. "Close that," she said. "Whatever was there is long gone now." Walking from unit to unit, we only found bins of long decayed food inside. But I was sure that there had to be working units somewhere, as I had heard humming coming from the area when I was on my daily rounds.

Finally we located to the airports' own refrigerated units, the ones maintained for the planes as opposed to the units rented to the food court vendors. When I opened these doors, the air poured out crisp and cool. We walked in.

"Looks like the power's on, and has been on," Julie said as she rummaged through the icy metallic shelves. For the most part, the containers were covered with white frost, so picking out the images on the labels was difficult, but after scraping the ice covering off of a number of them, I finally found something she might be interested in. I remembered from Perry's memories that she liked pad Thai, so I found some boxes with that label. I pulled them down from their shelf, dropping a few on the ground.

She rushed over to help me, and then got excited when she saw what I was holding.

"Pad Thai!" she exclaimed. "It's my favorite! What a coincidence. Think we can take these back to the plane?"

I nodded, and we closed the fridge door, shuffling back across the airport.

On our way through the airport, we passed the guy who wanded everybody as they passed through his TSA checkpoint. Julie obviously thought that was weird, but didn't comment. He wanded her just as he had wanded me every day that I was there. I used to be a little jealous of him. After all, he seemed to have a purpose to his day, and some vague memory of his human life before becoming Dead. I had tried to talk to him on several occasions, but he didn't seem to speak. He just stared at me, and then turned to the next person walking through his metal gateway, so I eventually gave up the effort.

We were at the front gate when suddenly a Boney appeared. Julie was so surprised that she gasped, blowing her cover. The Boney quickly stood in front of us. I took Julie's hand in mine, and then stepped in front of her protectively.

The Boney stared at us for a moment, looking from one to the other, and then looked at our joined hands. I took her hand more firmly, holding it in both of my hands, but ready to fight to defend her. The Boney reached out one long pointy hand, and started to touch her wrist, but I held up one of my hands to strike it. He hissed, and pointed first at her, and then at his mouth, while tilting his head forward. Though he didn't speak aloud, I could hear the word "Food" reverberating through my head.

I shook it, and said, "No."

The Boney looked surprised, then suddenly pulled up very close to me, so that its nose was almost touching mine, its empty eye sockets inches from my gray eyes. I forced myself to keep my eyes wide open and stared back at it, refusing to back down.

Finally the Boney stepped back, seeming surprised that I hadn't backed down, then turned and flashed through the open glass door onto the runway, quickly disappearing behind one of the luggage bins.

Relieved that it was gone, I felt we needed to act quickly. So I rushed Julie across the tarmac to my plane, not caring who saw the speed we were moving at. Just as we were about to board, I saw M peeking out from behind some covered luggage bins at the end of the runway. So I let Julie onto the plane, and then went back down to the foot of the stairs to wait for him.

He was acting odd, looking one way then the other before shuffling across the terminal to me.

"Boneys…" he started then wheezed. He seemed to be more than usually disheveled. He had what looked like a new bite to one ear, and his head looked a little concave, like he had been punched and then tried to fix his face himself. And there was something else, something I couldn't put my finger on.

But I didn't comment on his appearance, I only nodded. "Saw them," I said.

"They're…not happy. Something…up," he said.

I nodded, and then looked more closely. His color. He looked…less dead.

"You look…different?" was all I could say.

He nodded. "You too…" he reached out to pinch my cheeks. "Some color…here…loverboy," he half chuckled.

I was stunned. We can't laugh, but he almost did.

He caught my look. "I…almost laugh…now."

"It's…her," I said, pointing to the plane.

He nodded. "They know…must go," pointing to the east lot, he added quickly, shuffling off.

I looked in the direction he had pointed, and saw a group of Boneys. They weren't looking at us, fortunately. They seemed to be standing in a semi-circle, waiting for something or someone.

I felt cold inside, worried. This would be bad for Julie, if the Boneys figured out these changes were taking place because of her presence among us. I had to get her out of the airport soon, any way I could.

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	14. Chapter 14 - The Road Back

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 14 – The Road Back - Goldman Dome

We spent the night on the plane again, but the atmosphere was different after the encounter with the Boney in the terminal.

"We leave…tomorrow…you go…alone…if…need to…" I told her. It was the longest sentence I could remember speaking.

Julie, who was eating her Pad Thai paused, holding her wooden chop sticks midway to her mouth, then nodded. "Yeah, I need to get back. They're going to be worried about me, assuming that Marlowe got out of that building and reported me missing. They know the Boneys have a hive here at the airport, and my Dad might send a search party this far south eventually, you know. I gotta get back. Do you think Marlowe's group was OK?"

That was a lot to digest, but finally I nodded. "Yes…barricaded…upstairs…"

This seemed to reassure her, so after she finished her food, she reclined in one of the chairs under a blanket, and tried to sleep. She was anxious, fidgeting and tossing in her chair before finally falling asleep.

I went up to the cockpit, and pulled out a bit of Perry's brain. There wasn't a lot left, but I needed to see if there was any more information I could glean from his memories. As I chewed, the nerve endings in my brain began to flash, and I succumbed to the pleasure of the visions that formed in the darkness before my eyes.

Ooooo

I am Perry Kelvin, and I'm sweating awkwardly as I sit in a meeting with the General Grigio and Colonel Rosso. Grigio's at the end of the table, and Rosso is sitting across from me. The General looks stiff and formal, as always, while Rosso smiles, trying to put me at ease.

They're meeting with me to help settle affairs after my father's death.

"What do you plan to do now, son?" asked the General.

"I think, no, I've decided. I want to go into Security, Sir," I reply.

"What about the Agriculture Plan you were working on?" asked Rosso. "We really need to come up with a way to develop crops that can grow inside the limited space of the dome."

"That was then, back before I met him," I turn and point to…

Me, standing in the corner!

"I'm not part of this scene. I wasn't there," I hiss.

"Yes, you were always part of this," Perry states firmly. "What I was defending against, and what I am trying to save the world from. But now, you have to carry on. You'll need to watch the plants, which were part of my human dream, as well as the Living. All living things, and that includes Julie."

oooo

I shook my head, and realized that Julie was standing in front of me, frantically calling my name. I hadn't even heard her entering the cockpit.

"R! Are you back?" she asked breathlessly. "Where did you go?"

"Memories…scraps of... past," I said. "Trying…make sense of it..."

She plopped down in the co-pilot's seat next to me. "Same here. I couldn't sleep, so I came up here, looking for you. You know, I wasn't surprised to learn of Perry's death. That had been coming for a long time. The funny thing was-we both knew it. We could both feel what we had slipping away. He was steadily, I don't know, becoming more like my Dad, you know?"

Now that was a scary thought. I had been terrified when I met General Grigio. He looked well on his way to being a Boney, even while still alive. And it seemed he was already scenting things, just as we did.

"When Perry first came to the Dome…he had these dreams," Julie said. "Dreams of positive things, like working in agriculture. He had a plan to grow or develop some crops, using a tier landscaping method, like they did in ancient times in the Near East. Crops that we could eat, as well as use to feed the livestock. Later, near the end after his father died, he moved into Security. Rosy tried to talk him out of it, but I could see it in his eyes. He was already gone. Just like Dad, all he wanted to do was put up more walls."

She was quiet, and I watched her stare at the little drinking bird toy that I had set on the top of the instrument panels of the cockpit. She seemed distracted, watching it bob its head into and out of a glass for a while. Occasionally she would tap it, and it would make its little dip into the cup, and then finally come to a stop.

Finally, the motion seemed to make her sleepy and she began to nod off. I went and got her blanket and pillow from her seat in the main cabin, and gently put the pillow under her head before covering her with the blanket. She lay that way, curled up in the co-pilot's chair, sleeping for the rest of the night.

The only problem with trying to sleep in a cockpit was the lack of shades for the windows. When the sun came up, the cockpit flooded with light, and she was awake again. She tried hiding her face under the blanket, but that didn't work, and soon she had to sit up, stretching and grumbling at the early hour.

Once she settled down, we sat together quietly for an hour, looking out the window over the nose of the jet and watching the horizon lighting up with the new day. Finally she went into the main cabin to get something to eat. After that, though I tried to interest her in the board games, she only gave them half-hearted attention, as she constantly checked the terminal though the tiny windows in the cabin.

It was soon early afternoon, and she was definitely anxious to leave. "It's been clear for a while out there," she said, gesturing to the runway. "Can we go now?"

I nodded and got up, opened the door to the jet, and looked around the tarmac. It almost looked peaceful outside. The Dead had moved inside to do their days' travels through the airport terminals. More importantly, I didn't see any Boneys.

I reached behind myself to signal her, and felt her hand slip into mine. Startled, I turned around, and found her next to me, clutching my hand. Her hand felt warm and soft in mine. The Dead don't really make contact with one another, and this felt… good.

We went down the stairs and towards the terminal garage where I kept my car. As we got to it, Julie got more excited.

I gestured that she should drive, so she got in on the driver's side.

"This is great!" she exclaimed as she settled into her seat. "I've always wanted to drive a red convertible! And a Z40! This really is a dream come true."

She turned on the motor, giggling as the engine kicked on, as I closed the door on the passenger side. After carefully backing the car away from the Hummer, she headed out of the airport. We started driving north towards the city, and she laughed with delight at the feeling of the wind blowing her hair back. That lasted a while, until the rain started. And that's when she found one thing on the car that didn't work – the motorized roof didn't automatically pull back up.

Soon, she was drenched and cold, so we decided to pull over to spend the rest of the day inside, waiting out the rain. We pulled up to a house in the suburbs, still outside of the city limits. I thought it was far enough out of our standard hunting grounds that we would be safe for the night there.

The front door was locked, but I shoved it open with my shoulder, trying not to damage the frame too much. Though I was sure we were outside of the Dead's usually hunting grounds, there was no reason to make a night-time entry simple for them.

Once inside, Julie looked around the living room and was excited to find a phone on a small end table. She lifted the received and smiled, happy when she heard a dial tone, and told me she was calling home.

I did my best to smile back, though it was tearing my heart out knowing that making that call meant she was one step closer to rejoining her world, a place where I couldn't see her again. Even though I wanted her to be safe, the thought of parting was growing increasingly painful.

However, I was interested to see her expression turn to surprise then puzzlement when someone answered.

"Nora?" she said questioningly. "Why are you at my house? Is my Dad OK?"

Though I could hear only one side of the conversation, I watched as her expression began to turn to worry. She listened for a few minutes, then finally said, "Nora, Perry's dead, but I'm OK."

After a few more minutes, she answered, "OK, I understand. But this has given me a lot to think about."

Another pause, and she giggled. "Well, I'm not too far from the Dome now. We stopped to get out of the rain…actually, it's across from where I used to live. 942 East Downy Street. Can you believe it? I'm with someone, and he's got a convertible. Only problem, the car roof only has one position – down! That's not good in the rain, as you might guess."

She was quiet for another minute, and then said, "We'll drive the rest of the way in tomorrow. Bye, see you then!"

She hung up and turned to me. "Nora was at my house. She said she wanted to be there if I called, and talk to me before I talked to my Dad.

It seems Dad is convinced that Perry died inside the Dome, even though he saw us leave together. She says he's gotten really weird, and it's like he's struggling with himself."

I listened to her with growing horror. This sounds like it might have been what it was like when the plague started. Could the Living be transforming to Boney without even being bitten? Because if the General had been bitten, he would have already changed.

Julie must have read the expression on my face, because she said in a small voice, "R, you know what? You're starting to change a little yourself. Because I can read your facial expressions now. And whatever you're thinking, it's scaring me. What are you thinking?"

I shook my head, trying to clear it. She started to say something about shrugging, but I held out my hand. "Sounds like…Boney…beginning," I stammered out.

She gazed, stricken. "But he wasn't bitten! How is this possible?"

"Don't…know. Not sure…if correct." That was all I could get out.

But I reached out and took her one of her hands, holding it in mine. "It started…somewhere…plague…now changed?" Whoa, that was a long phrase, and a complicated thought! I mean, I can think complex notions, but I hadn't been able to put anything into words in years.

Julie just stared at me. Speechless for once.

"Say…something," I said.

She exhaled, slowly. "I think I follow you, and I'm scared," she replied.

"Me…too." I answered.

We sat in silence for a while, and then she went into the kitchen. She found some canned beans, and opened them. I sat across from her at the vinyl topped table, watching her eat and wondering at my own lack of hunger, when we heard the sound of a car pulling up outside. We both froze, and Julie quickly blew out the kerosene lamp she had lit on entering.

A knock came at the front door. I held out a hand for silence while I listened carefully. I heard the heartbeat of a single person, so I whispered, "Living" to her.

Julie slowly walked to the entrance hall and opened the door, and there on the porch stood Nora, the girl from I remember from Julie's bedroom. Julie screeched with excitement as she saw her friend, and flung herself into her arms.

As the girls greeted one another, I took a long look at Nora. I had only seen her in passing when I was at Julie's house, as I was trying to keep my head down. Nora was tall and thin, with dark skin and wild frizzy hair, barely tamed by a barrette on top of her head. She was dressed in black jeans and a camouflage jacket over a hunter green t-shirt, paired with black lace-up boots. The two girls hugged one another then began crying and rocking each other while still standing up. After a few minutes, they walked into the living and sat down on the sofa next to me.

Julie proceeded to introduce me as her friend R. In the dim light, it took Nora a minute to realize what I was. She sprang back from the sofa, pulling out her gun and training it on me. Julie quickly jumped up, standing in front of me protectively as she grabbed the gun's muzzle, pushing it down with both hands.

They stayed like that for a moment, staring at one another. Not knowing what to do, I sat stiffly in my corner of the sofa, playing nervously with the fringe on a pillow. Finally Nora broke the silence.

"What are you doing?" Nora hissed at Julie, looking at me.

"He's different," Julie said. "It's hard to explain, but the Dead are changing. He talks, and he has friends. Good friends, who came to search for him when he was in the city, and warned him of danger when we were at the airport yesterday. I can't leave him behind now. The Boneys are after him," Julie said.

"After…us," I corrected her.

Nora started and stared at me, then turned back to Julie.

"Did you intend to bring him with you?" she asked incredulously. "How? Where were you going to keep him? And what about food?"

I looked down, thinking that I almost sounded like a troublesome pet. Like a small t-rex someone had found and wanted to bring home.

"Just sit, please? And listen?" Julie begged her friend.

So Nora carefully sat down, perching on the arm of the overstuffed chair next to the sofa. Julie told her the story of how we met and spent the last few days. Or at least, her version of how we had met, I thought grimly. She still didn't know my part in Perry's death.

Finally Nora seemed to relax, and though she kept her gun out, she stopped pointing it at me from her hip. "Well, you and I have to go to the Goldman Dome for sure, now," she finally said. "We can't risk going back to our Dome with him. Your Dad is just getting weirder by the moment. Rosy has noticed it, but doesn't say anything. I think some of the others in command have noticed as well. But everyone is so afraid, that they don't know what to do. So they do nothing."

Julie agreed, and suggested that she and Nora get some sleep. She had brought the suitcase with her from the plane, and she pulled it out now, showing Nora the cosmetics and other treasures. Though Nora kept a close eye on me, she was clearly excited to see the contents of the suitcase.

"Where did you get this again?" Nora asked.

"The airport terminal. R has his own plane! And he's filled it with interesting stuff, from records, to toys, to clothes…"

"Records?" Nora asked.

"Yes, he likes music. Don't you R?" Julie said, turning to me.

I nodded, and then remembered. I needed to speak. "Yes…music. Records…have better sound," I stated, twisting my finger in a circle, to imitate the motion of a spinning record.

"Wow," Nora said. "He's not only a music lover, he's a music snob!" She sounded quite impressed, I noticed. "Well, we'll take him with us in the car. But first, let's get some sleep."

As they walked up the stairs together, I saw Nora nudging Julie. "Did you two…" she started.

Julie whispered back, "No. And don't talk as if he can't hear us, because he can."

Then they reached the landing and turned a corner. I lay back on the sofa staring at the ceiling for a while. I heard the sounds of water running upstairs, and of doors being opened and closed. They must be looking for blankets, I thought. Eventually, the house fell silent except for the sound of their quiet breathing in the room above me.

And to my amazement, I felt my body relaxing, and I realized that I was falling asleep as well. Which didn't make sense, as the Dead don't sleep. And as soon as I closed my eyes, the nightmare that began made me long for the minor terrors of my zombie life as a Dead.

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	15. Chapter 15 - the Goldman Dome

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 15 – the Gold man Dome

_Then they reached the landing and turned a corner. I lay back on the sofa staring at the ceiling for a while. I heard the sounds of water running upstairs, and of doors being opened and closed. They must be looking for blankets, I thought. Eventually, the house fell silent._

_And to my amazement, I felt my body relaxing, and I realized that I was falling asleep._

I wish I could say the sleep was refreshing and peaceful, but it wasn't. In my dreams, I was taking the place of the Dead I saw in the classroom, being cut open with a knife while still conscious. I was the one lying on the table, strapped down, watching the knife descend. As it cut into me, I was shocked to feel pain.

The terror woke me up, and I jerked upright, gasping for unneeded breath, panicking. _It was only a dream_, I told myself. I knew, however, it had probably been the reality for the Dead I had left behind in the enclosure I had escaped after killing Perry.

I fought sleep, but felt my limbs growing heavy. I tried sitting up, but somehow the sound of Julie's even breathing above was lulling me to sleep, however unwillingly. Soon I found myself back in my dreams, or rather my nightmares. Back on that table, strapped down, watching the knife descend.

The next morning, when I woke up for the final time, I was startled to find myself blinking in the morning light. The light coming through the window was hurting my eyes a little. What was happening to me?

Julie and Nora came downstairs shortly after I woke up. I didn't tell them of my nightmare, and after they rummaged around in the kitchen, finally finding something to eat, we left the house.

we all climbed into Nora's Hummer, deciding to leave my convertible behind since the top didn't go back up. No need spewing Living scent along the route we were about to travel. I was placed in the middle so that Julie could have the passenger's side seat belt, and then we headed to the Goldman Dome. That was the other dome nearby; the one General Grigio was supposed to be working on a merger with. Perry Kelvin's father had died while working on a tunnel that was to connect the two domes.

Apparently, as Julie and Nora were going to bed, they had come up with a plan to take me with them into the Dome. This plan involved using the makeup that Julie had brought from my 747 to try to disguise me as a human. I guess they realized I wouldn't be able to wear Perry's helmet all the time.

As Nora drove, Julie put the base layer of make-up my face. After dabbing on the foundation with a sponge, she started to comb my hair.

"Will be…wearing helmet," I said, as she tugged at my hair with the small plastic comb.

"I know, but you're going to look good before that helmet goes on," replied Julie. Finally she set the comb down and began rubbing a little makeup on my cheek with her fingertip.

"Actually, R, you are looking pretty good as it is," Nora commented. "Your eyes…they're gray, but they have more life than I'm used to seeing in you corpses," she said.

Julie hissed, and Nora started to apologize.

I raised my hand. "OK…she complimented…" I told Julie.

"Yeah, we're just not used to talking about you in friendly terms," Julie said. "I mean, really, what do we humans know about the state of being of a corpse? We've been taught to fear it, I mean you…"

"You should…fear," I replied. "But…we say 'Dead'…not corpse."

"Wow! That's getting a lot closer to a sentence. And the General claims you guys can't talk," said Nora.

"Most…can't…just groan," I replied.

"That's what I've been telling you, Nora," hissed Julie. "They're changing!"

"Not…Boneys," I said firmly. Julie paused in her application of the make-up at this statement. I looked at her, longing to say more, but it just wouldn't come. The Boneys were terrifying, but they were different from us. They were faster, and seemed to move together, in synchronized motions, as if in response to internal commands the rest of us could not perceive.

"Yeah, we noticed," Nora observed. "And they've always been worse than you guys. Or seemed worse, anyway."

"We Dead…are in-between…Living…and Boney," I said.

"That's kind of what I thought," she said, smiling. "Hey, is it true that if you eat the brain of a human, you get their memories?" Though her tone was light as she asked this question, it hit too close to the truth about Perry for comfort.

Stunned, I said nothing.

Julie said, "Nora," in a low voice.

We drove in silence for another few minutes, when suddenly the there was a loud thump on the roof of the Jeep. This was quickly followed by the appearance of skeletal hands on the passenger side window. Julie screamed, startling Nora, who slammed on the brakes. As the Jeep skidded to a stop, a Boney that had been on the roof slid off the roof, crashing into the road ahead of us. It quickly got up and turned back around to face us, but it wasn't alone.

We were almost instantly surrounded by the monsters, who must have been waiting for us. Surprisingly, they didn't immediately attack the Jeep. Instead, they formed a circle around the Jeep, as if waiting for someone. The two girls pulled shotguns from the floor, and Nora set hers across her lap while she tried to restart the Jeep, which had stalled out when she hit the brakes so hard.

In an eerie, synchronized gesture, the Boneys open up their circle on the left side of the Jeep, and a slightly taller Boney stepped through the break, and approached the driver's side door. The sun glinted off of one of his gold teeth, and I knew immediately who it was. This was the leader of the Boneys, the one I had seen a few times at the airport. The other Boneys seemed to follow him like bees following a queen bee. No questions, just drones after their leader.

As he approached the Jeep's open window, a low humming began from the circle, and he as he got closer, he opened his mouth and began to utter a low roar. I was terrified, for myself as well as the girls, and leaned over Julie, frantically trying to push open the passenger side door so I could get her out and try to escape.

But any action on my part was proven unnecessary as Nora took her hands off the steering wheel, picked up her gun, and blew the Boney leader's head off. Bits of his skull exploded out in all directions at the impact, and the rest of the Boneys froze.

Nora then restarted the Jeep and smashed through the line of Boneys ahead of us, scattering them as she powered ahead.

Once we were clear, Julie looked out the window behind us.

"Wow, Nora! That was…awesome," she said. "And they're not following us. It's like…well, they're closing in around that guy you smashed or something."

"That was…their…leader" I said, struggling with my fear. _What would they do to us for having killed him? _I thought.

Nora's head jerked towards me when I said that. "Watch…road," I muttered.

"Right," she said. "Their leader? What does that mean?"

"Don't…know. Go…get safe…fast" I stammered out, looking over at Julie.

Nora turned her eyes back on the road, narrowly avoiding a pot hole. "So you guys have leaders?"

I shook my head. "Not…us. Them," I said, becoming increasingly frustrated at my inability to vocalize complete thoughts.

While Nora and I were talking, Julie had put her gun back on the floor, and retrieved the make-up, which had fallen down when Nora slammed on the brakes. She turned my head back towards her, and began touching my face with her make-up sponge again.

I closed my eyes, relishing her light touches on my face.

"How's the make-up coming?" Nora asked. "Because we're almost there. I can see the gate ahead, and they're watching us approach. This is an unauthorized visit, you know. And these days, nobody likes anything out of the ordinary."

Julie patted a last bit of powder on, put the compact away and handed me my helmet. I put it on carefully, trying not to smudge the layers of make-up. She looked at me, turning my face back and forth, and then nodded to Nora.

"I think we're good. I don't see any gray, just beige flesh tones," she told her.

Nora slowed down the Hummer as we approached, and finally stopped once we got to the no-man's land of obstacles made of wood and barbed wire designed to thwart an all-out, massive attack. We got out, closing the doors behind us, and walked slowly up to the gate. Though the guard at the door clearly recognized Julie, he still made us wait while he called inside on his walkie-talkie.

After a few minutes, the massive gate opened, and a man in a uniform similar to Julie's Dad walked through. But the uniform was the only similarity between the two generals. This man, tall and white haired, carried himself with dignity, if a great deal of caution. His gaze was piercing, but his eyes were intelligent, not flat and dangerous like General Grigio's.

As he walked out, he stopped in front of the three of us. "Julie?" he said. "We heard reports that you and Perry Kelvin were lost on a salvage. And yet you stand here in front of me."

Instead of answering, Julie started sobbing. I realized that she had been holding back around me, but hearing Perry's name from someone else seemed to break down her façade. Nora put her arms around Julie.

The new man waited, patiently, head bowed, until Julie recovered herself.

"I'm sorry, General Steiger," Julie finally gasped out. "I just saw Perry die in front of me, two days ago. Archie here…" she gestured towards me "…he had been hiding in the building's upper floors. When Perry and I split off from the others, Archie came up the stairwell because he heard us. He said his brother was downstairs, and we went down to see him. You know Perry, he should have called Marlowe before heading down, but he was determined to handle this himself.

We were surprised by some Boneys who had managed to get the stairwell door open and enter the stairwell. Archie managed to kill several of them and get the door closed, but one got behind us and bit Perry before we killed it. We ended up losing both Perry and Archie's brother."

She started crying again.

Nora kept her arm around Julie and told the General, "Julie and Archie took shelter in an abandoned house, and she called home as soon as she found a working phone. I was there, waiting, and was so glad to hear from her, as well as so upset about Perry, that I acted like a fool and raced out to get her. We got cut off by some Boneys, so we came over to your dome. "

The man, General Steiger, looked over at me. I had put Perry's flak jacket on before leaving the 747, and had his helmet on, but this time the visor was up.

"I'm pleased to meet you, son," General Steiger said, extending his hand to me. "You saved the daughter of an old friend."

As I was wearing gloves, I took his hand, but tried to return his firm grip with one of my own in a handshake. Something I hadn't done since…well, I didn't know how long I had been Dead.

"You are welcome here," the General continued, gesturing to the city behind him. "Nora, Julie, I will call General Grigio and let him know you arrived here safely. I'm sure he'll be sending someone immediately to pick you up."

Julie stopped crying. "No, wait. Can I stay here for a few days, maybe a week? I just feel as if…well, everything back home is going to remind me of Perry. I'd like to be able to clear my head."

"The normal pass is three days, as you know," the General said sternly. Then his eyes softened, looking at her tear-stained face. "But of course, in the case of such grief…I'm sure we can work something out. You can stay at one of the guest workers' houses until we get the details arranged."

With that he turned and led us in through the front gate.

The difference between the two domes was striking. While the other dome had houses thrown up at weird angles, looking unsteady, the buildings inside this dome appeared to have been built according to a master plan. The houses, though tall and narrow, appeared stable, and were painted bright colors. It looked like the blocks were color coordinated.

The General watched my stare with an amused smile. "Yes, we had time to do some planning," he commented, seeming to be answering my unspoken thoughts. "Grigio took in everybody until his space was full, and people put up what they could, where they could in that dome.

We did that initially, but we quickly managed to get some planning underway. The blocks of buildings in this dome are out on a large circular grid, like a large clock. The different sectors are color-coded with paint, to aid navigation among the houses."

He paused as I looked around. I could now see that the rows of houses, with tidy paved streets dividing the blocks, were painted a variety of colors, from blue to yellow to green. But each house was of a slightly different hue, and a variety in trim colors succeeded in breaking up what would have been single blocks of color. The impression was startling, but also one of life and vitality.

"It does give a certain, Dr. Suessian look to the city, I will admit," the General continued. "But I think it keeps it cheerful. Whether cheerful or absurd, depends on your point of view, I suppose. I prefer cheerful."

He started down one of the streets, where the houses on one side were green, and on the other side yellow. As he escorted the three of us to our quarters, I marveled at the ingenuity of the city's layout. The circular grid meant that they had managed to pack a lot of buildings into this small space. And perhaps most amazing of all, there were tiny parks scattered throughout the area. Little patches of green, with playground equipment on them. It all lead to a cheerful yet organized look. So different from the depressing, desperate appearance of Julie's dome.

"I'm a firm believer in green spaces," said the General as we passed one of the tiny parks. Looking more closely, I saw there were small flower beds within each park. Some had flowers in bloom, others just had greenery that appeared to be between season. "I think people need to feel connected to the earth and other living things. Helps keep them sane."

Nora smiled, listening to him. "I think people are healthier here, General," she said. "We all have about the same diet, but I looking around me, I see more smiles. I think where there is beauty, people do better."

"Nicely observed," said the General.

"Thank you, sir," Nora replied. "I've always wanted to be a nurse, and I've been studying the people around me. I read Gray's Anatomy, but I really need to find a clinic so I can do a real internship. Just knowing the body parts, and some basic First-Aid, doesn't feel like enough to me."

The General nodded thoughtfully at her remark. "I've been hoping to get enough doctors that we can have some trainees follow them through their day," her replied. "But we've so few skilled medical personnel, that we haven't been able to spare them to do a teaching program. Which, of course, is short-sighted. Maybe I can introduce you to one of our nurse-practitioners while you're here, and you can talk to her about some training?"

Nora's eyes lit up at this suggestion. I thought she was going to clap her hands with excitement, but instead she just clasped them together, biting her lip with excitement.

Just then we rounded a corner and arrived at a two-story building with a small, hand-painted sign over the entrance. "Here are your quarters," the General said. "You'll have the two rooms on the second floor. Gentleman on one side of the hall, ladies on the other, please."

He saw us inside of the door, and then bowed, turned crisply on his heel, and left. As I watched his retreating figure, I felt a great deal more confident than I had after meeting General Grigio. Confident that Julie would be OK here, under his protection. As for myself, I needed to get out of here quickly, though I didn't know where I could go. At this point, I was neither Living nor Dead. I seemed stranded somewhere in between. But I couldn't risk endangering Julie by staying with her.

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	16. Chapter 16 - Dinner

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 15 – Dinner

Of all the things that had happened to me so far since my capture, what was about to happen was scaring me the most.

I was sitting on the rickety chair in our guest room, with Julie reapplying my make-up. "I'm sorry," she said, "but we have to go do a meal with the group. I'm trying to get Steiger to let me stay, so I have to act interested in his community."

Meet the group. I felt like I was about to be thrown to the wolves. At least in the enclosure, I had the other Dead with me. Now I was going to enter a room full of the Living, and try to pass myself off in a situation involving food and conversation? I shuddered.

Julie skillfully played Zombie-Barbie with me, using make-up, including a light foundation, to undo an appearance earned by years of being a walking Dead. Finally she quit patting on fluids and powder, and stood back to admire her handiwork. As a final touch, she added a squirt of cologne. It had a musky overtone, and I choked slightly, but put on a smile and held my head up.

"How…do I…look?" I asked.

She giggled in response, and I looked down, feeling uncertain about going out among the Living.

Julie quickly reassured me. "I'm sorry, but when you asked that question, you sounded like a girl," she said, breaking into a full laugh. Nora poked her head into the room when she heard Julie laughing, and made an audible gasp.

"R, you look…hawt!" she exclaimed.

I looked around, confused.

"You look good," said Julie. "Very human. It's just the way you phrased your question that made me giggle, that's all."

I smiled inwardly. And apparently outwardly, because Julie said, "You smiled! That's the first time I've seen you do that!"

I bit my lip. "I…haven't…in…long time," I managed to stammer out.

Nora announced, "Well, if you two are about ready, supper's getting cold. And if we want to sit together, we need to leave now. As in, _now_."

So the three of us walked over to the Commissary. On our way, I marveled once again at the contrast to Julie's dome as we passed tidy rows of narrow houses painted sky blue, and a striking armory done in forest camouflage colors of green and brown.

Although the light was fading, we had no problem finding the dining hall, as the sound of laughter came through the open window. We entered the noisy room together, with Nora and Julie on either side of me, and quickly found seats at one of the long tables that filled the large rectangular room. Lots of guys want to sit next to Julie, but she maneuvered us to sit near the end of the table so I would receive less attention. The two girls sandwiched me between them, and I kept my head down, trying to avoid attention.

Nora quickly elbowed me. "Look around," she hissed. "It looks like you're avoiding everyone's eyes."

"I…am," I replied. I didn't want anyone focused on me.

"Well, stop it," she instructed me quietly. "It's normal human behavior to check out other people. You can do it discretely, but you have to do it."

So I made an effort to look quickly down the rows of faces lining either side of the table. There were smiling and laughing men and women, passing food, eating and talking. Somehow seeing this began to stir memories of my own, not Perry's. I seemed to remember a similar scene, but it was outside, during the summer. There were fireflies…I tried to focus on the faces, but the memory evaporated as Nora handed me a serving bowl of food.

Plates were passed down to me, and I found myself attempting to balance the bowl in one hand while handling a serving spoon with the other. Nora noticed my discomfort and came to my rescue, and served both of us from each dish as it was passed down the table to us.

Soon I found myself staring at a highly unappetizing plate covered with a mound of white rice, some gray meet covered in tan stuff that must have been gravy, and a bright pile of green beans. I knew I was going to have to try to eat, so I put some of the rice in my mouth, forcing it down.

I felt eyes upon me, and I saw General Steiger watching me from across the room. When I caught his eyes, he smiled, but I felt his stare had been appraising.

My attention was drawn back to Julie and Nora when Nora started remarking on the green beans. "These are fabulous! They have…texture," she said delightedly. "I'm used to the canned stuff."

"We try to reserve the MRE's for when we need them," a voice came from behind us. "But I picked these beans today, when I heard we had visitors."

We turned to see a plump woman wearing an apron who was standing at the end of the table, ladling food into the serving bowls.

I couldn't help but thinking, well, at least something, or rather someone, looked good enough to eat here! _Bad R, stop that_. Picking up another forkful of rice, I put it in my mouth and forced myself to swallow. It was a little easier this time, but it still tasted like cardboard to me.

Finally dinner was over. I let the sound of the Livings' laughing voices flow around me. Occasionally Julie nudged me, letting me know that someone was addressing me, so I could look up and nod at them.

I also heard her tell people, "He just lost his brother, you know, and he just needs a little time before he's ready to talk."

I heard sympathetic responses to this statement, and eventually I was left alone. Because they really weren't that interested in me. They were all fascinated by the vibrant, beautiful girl sitting next to me.

It was obvious, even to me, that this was Julie's night. I couldn't imagine that her desire to join this group could be any less than their desire to have her here. She was in her element, answering questions, laughing, replying to smart remarks with wisecracks of her own.

I smiled. She would be OK here, I felt. I liked this General Steiger much better than Julie's father. For one thing, he seemed on to me, so it was going to be necessary for me to get out, and let her carry on with her life among the other Living. However hard that would be for me.

After what felt like hours, we left the commissary and headed back to our guest quarters. Once inside, Nora chimed in. "Well, sleeping arrangements will be unusual," remarked Nora.

"I…don't sleep," I told her. Then I remembered that I had slept the night before in the house. It had been the first time in years. I shuddered remembering the nightmares that seemed to come the second I shut my eyes.

Fortunately, Nora's voice broke my chain of thought. "No, I'm not going to sleep in here with you, even when you're across the hall. Sorry, Julie, but I feel somebody has to stay awake."

I ducked my head, ashamed, though I couldn't say why.

"I'll take first watch, and he's staying in here with us," Julie responded quickly. "I'll wake you up at 1:00 A.M., OK?"

Nora nodded and lay down. She was quickly asleep, one hip up, face sideways, hugging the thin pillow.

Julie sat for a while, writing in a journal, then, winking at me, she curled up in the chair, making a pillow out of a sweater. "Wake me up at 12:45, OK?" she asked.

I nodded, and soon she was snoring.

I was sorely tempted to take the journal she had been writing in, but I knew I wouldn't be able to read it.

After about two hours, I heard Nora starting to turn and become restless, as if she was about to wake up. I nudged Julie with my foot, and she sat up sleepily, her hair sticking out like a haystack.

Nora sat up, rubbing her eyes, then looked at Julie. "You were asleep," she said, pointing her finger accusingly.

"What of it?" Julie replied tartly. "I slept in a room, or rather on a plane, with him for several nights. He never did anything."

Nora snorted. "Maybe, but I'm not you."

I felt like adding, "Well, I'm not me any more either," but didn't feel I could get it out.

We spent the rest of the night with Julie snoring away, and Nora sitting up, studying her book, Gray's Anatomy. At some point, though I fought it, I felt myself dropping off. Unfortunately, I was almost immediately subjected to the same nightmares as the night before, only even more vivid. I was strapped to a table, but it wasn't a teenager wielding the knife that was plunging into me, it was John Grigio, wearing a white face mask.

I was wakened from my bad dream with a start, and realized Nora was tugging at my arm.

"R!" she whispered. "Are you all right? You were moaning!"

I nodded, still trying to shake the effects of the nightmare.

Nora pulled up the chair next to the bed. "You not only sleep, but you dream?" she whispered.

I nodded. "Just…since meeting…her," I said softly, gesturing to Julie.

Nora looked over at Julie, and then back at me. "Interesting," she said softly.

I kept myself awake for the rest of the night. As morning came, I heard a car pull up outside, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps entering the hallway and stopping in front of the door.

Even through the closed door I could pick up General Grigio's scent. Nora looked over at me, and whispered quietly, "Is it him?"

I nodded, just as a forceful knock came at the door.

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	17. Chapter 17 - Night Out

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured and taken inside the city? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 17 – Social Life – Night Out

_Even through the closed door I could pick up General Grigio's scent. Nora looked over at me, and whispered quietly, "Is it him?"_

_I nodded, just as a heavy knock came at the door._

Julie rolled over in bed, looking around sleepily as she rubbed her eyes. Nora got up and went to the door, opening it just a crack.

"Hello, Nora," I heard General Grigio say. "Is my daughter here?"

"Yes, but she's sleeping. She's had a tough few days, as you can imagine," Nora whispered.

Julie had frozen hearing her father's voice. I caught her eye and closed my own in a theatrical way, hoping she would get the hint. She did, and closed her eyes, feigning sleep.

"I wish you would have called me when you heard from her," the General said. Apparently he was pushing on the door, but Nora leaned against it from the inside, keeping it closed with her body.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, "but I just got so excited when I heard her voice. I jotted that note for you and took off. But right now, she's asleep. Where will you be, so we can find you once she's showered and dressed?"

The General murmured something in a low voice, and Nora whispered, "OK. Until then," and firmly shut the door.

Once she heard his footsteps leave, she went over to Julie's bed.

Julie sat up, staring at Nora. "Is he…?"

"Yeah, I think it's worse," Nora said. "We've got to get Rosy over here, and alert General Steiger. He's known your father for years. He'll notice- I'm sure of it."

Julie threw off the covers and got out of bed. "Sorry, R. Nora and I talked before we went to sleep at the house outside the city. She's noticed that my Dad's getting strange, too. Actually, she thinks a lot of people are beginning to notice."

I just stared at her, and she bit her lip.

"I think what you said may be right," she told me in a small voice. "I haven't told Nora yet, though. I keep hoping it's impossible."

"Tell me what?" demanded Nora.

"Let me take a shower and get dressed," Julie replied. "Do they allow daily showers here?"

Nora nodded, and Julie grabbed the green knapsack Nora had brought from her house and headed down the hall.

"Tell me what?" repeated Nora.

"Is he…going…Boney?" I asked.

"No, he wasn't bitten. We would know," Nora said firmly.

"Not…what…I asked," I replied.

Nora stared at me for a minute, her eyes widening. "Is that possible?"

I shrugged. "Seems to…be…with him…"

She put her head in her hands. "How can we tell, now? It used to be so clear cut. But now…first you, and you're not quite either one. And now he's becoming one of them without being bit? Where does it all end?"

I didn't have an answer for her, as I had no idea myself.

A few minutes later, Julie returned and told us she wanted to see her father alone, and wanted Nora to stay with me. That suited me fine, so I lay back on the bed. But I didn't sleep. I just stared at the ceiling. Nora sat close by, at the small desk, trying to study, but finally gave up. She stood up, pulled on a jacket, and motioned to me to follow her. "Come on," she said. "We're going to find a phone."

When we looked outside, and saw that it was raining, Nora didn't bother trying to put any make-up on me. Walking down the street towards the center of the city, she soon found an office with a phone, and asked permission to call the other dome. The soldier nodded, and left the room to give us some privacy.

After Nora seated herself at the desk, she picked up the phone and made her phone call. "Rosy? It's Nora. Julie and I are fine, we're at Steiger's place…Yeah, we ran into a problem on the way over, and frankly…I feel better over here. Can you come?...Thanks. See you later today."

She hung up the phone and looked at me. "Rosy's coming. If anybody can sort this out, it will be him and Steiger, you'll see."

Eventually Julie rejoined us. Her eyes were red and swollen, as if she had been crying, but she just told us she didn't want to talk about it. She and Nora stuck close to me for the rest of the day, and tried to keep anyone else from getting too close to me.

Nora was beginning started to relax around me, but she still kept an eye on Julie and I when we were together, watching us carefully.

In the middle of the afternoon, a woman in a gray uniform came by our room, and asked to talk to Nora. Nora went out with her. When she came back a little later, she was excited, her cheeks flushed.

"It's great news!" she exclaimed. "That was the nurse practitioner. Steiger told her about my request to shadow someone, and she's offered going to let me work with her in the medical tent! I'll have some experience, in addition to my book reading!

Also, she told that they have a kind of night club, just like the Orchard Bar at home!" she said excitedly. "It's supposed to be really nice, too. It's called 'Noir'."

After dinner, we made our way over to it. My pace was getting better, maybe it was being around humans, but I was able to keep up with the two excited girls.

We had passed Noir several times on trips through the city. It was in a building that was painted bright red on the outside, like much of the rest of the block. They had divided the city like a clock, and this was in the 10:00 block, whereas our guest quarters were in the 2:00 block. As we made our way over, we passed some soldiers on patrol. One had a dog, and the dog instantly went on guard as I passed. It growled, pulling at its chain, trying to move closer to me for a sniff.

The guard yanked him back. "Thor, no!" he said. "Sorry. He's trained to do that with the Dead, but every once in a while, he seems to take a dislike to one of us." He pulled Thor with him as walked away, but the dog looked back at me, hackles raised.

Thor had my number, no doubt about it.

The atmosphere was a bit more subdued after running into the soldier with the guard dog, but the girls' spirits lifted as we got closer to Noir. We could hear the sound of voices and laughter from over our heads as we approached. Like the club in Julie's dome, Noir was perched on top of tall thin building. The only way to access it was to climb a narrow stairway that wound around the outside of the building. I still had challenges with stairs, and the fact that this set was a repurposed fire escape, consisting stairs made of steel bars linking platforms made with open gratings, made the climb a bit unnerving for me, so it took us a while to get to the top.

Once we arrived, we found the door was open, and the interior was packed with the Living. I was worried about someone touching me, but Nora reassured me, saying, "It's dark in here. No one's going to notice you, believe me. They'll all be looking at Julie."

I hoped she was right.

Two guys did look a bit closely as soon as we entered. Almost as soon as we found a table, a brown haired waitress quickly appeared, setting down three cups of hot coffee. Julie looked at her surprised. "From the guys at table four, with their regards." She pointed to a table behind her, and two guys raised their hands.

After she was gone, one sauntered over and handed Julie a dramatically folded cloth napkin. "With our regards, and welcome to the Goldman Dome," he said, with a bow.

Julie giggled and handed Nora napkin. "Thank you," she replied.

"With our regards," he said, giving a dramatic, low bow. "My name is Tom, and that..." he waved to the other guy still sitting at the table "…is Dick."

When Nora unfolded it, she discovered a bottle inside.

"Irish whiskey," she murmured admiringly as she turned the bottle in her hands, all the while holding it under the table.

"It's for an Irish coffee," Tom told us, then returned to his table.

Nora surreptitiously poured the whiskey, dividing it equally into each of the three coffees, and we all had a sip.

"Mmmm…" said Julie and Nora at the same time, then they looked at one another and giggled.

I tried a mouthful. It was hot – and something else. It packed a punch. I felt light-headed, and suddenly had a memory flash of other drinks, at other tables. Only these memories were definitely mine. People weren't dressed like they had been at either dome. In my memory, I felt the sensation of loud music around me, and saw the flash of red velvet and gold sequined dresses from a nearby dance floor. There were smiles across a table, and the sound of laughter. Someone was starting to speak…

Then just like that, the memory evaporated, out of my reach. I was frustrated, as this was now the second of the flashes from my own past life I had experienced. I tried to tell myself that if I had experienced these two, surely there would be more. But I wondered if they would only happen as long as I was around Julie.

I noticed that I was starting to get really light-headed. I could have sworn I heard a dog barking somewhere, and the noise and crush of people in this small dark room was becoming overwhelming. I needed to get some air.

Tom came back to our table, with Dick in tow, and they asked Julie and Nora to dance. The girls got up to join them, Julie's eyes were flashing with excitement, and she gestured to me, indicating I should try to dance too.

I shook my head. Dancing, that was something that was way beyond my developing abilities. Climbing those stairs had almost winded me. After all, I was barely able to walk like the Living. This blending process was taking a toll on me. It occurred to me that I couldn't remember the last time I ate.

But apparently, getting sick was something I could do, I suddenly realized. I shouldn't have finished the coffee.

I stumbled out onto the roof, looking for a bathroom, hoping I wouldn't have to toss my cookies off of the roof.

But what I saw below sobered me up quickly: General Grigio, standing with the dog handler. The barking had not been my imagination-it was the German shepherd from earlier. Even from this vantage point, I could tell there had been a change in General Grigio's scent. It was murkier, not as fresh an intoxicating as a normal Living's scent would be. I couldn't see his face clearly in the darkness, but it appeared the bones on his face were more prominent.

"You're saying the dog had a strong reaction to Archie, Julie's friend?" the General was asking the soldier.

"Yeah, Thor ran back here, slipping his leash when I put it down to brush him," reported the soldier. "He got this far, but he was having trouble with these fire-escape steps, so I was able to grab him."

The General looked up, and I flattened myself against the wall, pressing my head and back onto the wood in an effort to hide. He was suspicious. I had to leave.

Just as General Grigio was starting up the stairs, General Steiger appeared out of the shadows and approached him. "General, I heard you had arrived. I have something I need to show you, as soon as possible. There has been a development…"

"Of course," John Grigio said, starting to leave with him. As he turned to walk away, he gave a frustrated look over his shoulders at the side of the building, seeming to see me in the shadows at the top of the stairs. From my vantage point in the shadows, I could see that his already beady eyes were becoming more like dark slits in his face, as if they were starting to disappear into the bony cup surrounding the eye. All of the bones in his face appeared much more pronounced than the last time I had seen him. And since I was accurately aware of a Living's gait, I noticed that his was becoming different. Jerkier and faster.

After watching him follow General Steiger back towards the city center, I began to work out my escape route from the city. However painful, it was time for me to go, and leave Julie with her own kind, the Living.

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	18. Chapter 18 - The Tunnel

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, and taken into the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 18 – the Tunnel

_The General looked up, and I flattened myself against the wall, pressing my head and back onto the wood in an effort to hide. He was suspicious. I had to leave._

_After watching him follow General Steiger back towards the city center, I began to work out my escape route from the city. However painful, it was time for me to go, and leave Julie with her own kind, the Living._

Pushing back the pain of my feelings at part from Julie, I focused on working on my exit plan. I started to stumble towards the gate, but realized the guards wouldn't just let me outside to go for an evening stroll. I had to find some other way out of the city. As unobtrusively as possible, I started walking the perimeter of the dome, trying to see where the exits were. I didn't expect to simply find an opening in the wall somewhere, as General Steiger seemed too methodical and intelligent to allow such a simple exit. But I needed to find some way out. Something, anything. I was getting desperate.

As I walked, I remembered that Perry's father had been working on a tunnel to the other dome. There might be something at the construction site. If the two domes were being linked, maybe work was being done in both directions, and there would be a construction site opening in this dome as well.

It took a while, but I finally found the gated entrance. It was clear work hadn't been done on the project in a while, as there was grass growing under the heavy equipment parked around the construction site. Pushing open the gate, I crept behind it, and then pushed it back so that it was almost closed. It was dark inside, but I thought I could hear rustlings below. Strange – the Living couldn't work in dark areas.

I carefully started down the tunnel, which was still mid-way through construction.

Initially, there were finished-looked floors, walls and ceilings. Work lamps had been strung on hooks along the walls. They weren't permanent, but the area would have been brightly lit when the lights were illuminated, allowing the construction crew to do their job.

The furtherer I got into the tunnel, the less work had been done. Gradually, the finished walls and ceilings gave way to beams and support structures, and wooden slats or bars lined the ground, instead of a paved walkway. Small pieces of construction equipment, including light bulldozers, drills, and other earthmoving equipment were parked against the muddy walls.

Suddenly I saw movement ahead. I stopped, and a shadowy group started towards me, a familiar figure in front. I reached up to turn on one of the lamps, and saw that it was M. After the pain of leaving Julie behind, I felt a rush of relief at seeing my friend. These returning emotions had me on a roller coaster, and it was a bumpy ride.

Once I recovered, I saw that he had a lot of the others from the airport. None of them looked good, as they all had what appeared to be recent injuries and torn clothing.

I walked forward to meet him. "You…again!" I said, and leaned forward to hug him. He was startled, but tried to respond, clapping me clumsily on my back.

"You keep…finding me….stalker!" I exclaimed.

M choked at this greeting, making a noise that was almost a laugh, but not quite. After gazing at one another for a few minutes, hands on each other's' shoulders, M finally began to speak seriously.

"Bad…out there…Boneys…massed," he stammered out. Then he gestured to the group behind him. Looking again, I realized there were a lot more than I had first noticed. Some must have been walking more slowly and were only just catching up.

"How?" I gestured to the tunnel.

M tapped his finger to his head. This time he actually smiled. "Escape…Boneys. Tunnel worker…" he pointed, and a Dead wearing a hard hat nodded to me. "He knew…entrance…"

"Cave-in?" I said. The man nodded again. "Closed…now?" I asked. The Dead nodded. "Good..."

I stared at M. "We're…different…aren't we? Changing…"

M nodded. "It's… her," he told me seriously.

I nodded my agreement. Apparently, Julie's influence was spreading.

Then he said, "Has…friend? Brown…hair…"

I almost laughed. That was M. He had somehow seen Nora.

"Beau-ti-ful…" M stretched out the word, letting it roll across his tongue. Now I did laugh.

But since they were down here, I knew I couldn't leave. I would have to go back and find Julie and Nora, and possibly face Julie's Dad, General Grigio. "Be…back. Wait?"

M nodded.

As I started to walk off, I turned back again. "Be…safe," I called out. They all nodded and I made my way back to the entrance.

With a new sense of purpose, I walked back to the guest housing. When I opened the door to our room, Nora and Julie were already inside, and they jumped up as I entered, visibly relieved to see me.

Julie rushed to me, gathering me into a hug. She leaned back, looking me over, noticing the mud on my shoes and pant cuffs. "We missed you! Where did you go?"

"Food…booze…" I rubbed my stomach ruefully.

"Wait. Are you saying you got sick?" demanded Nora.

I nodded, and then continued. "Plus…your Dad?...and dog…"

Julie and Nora both gasped. "He saw you?"

"No…Steiger came…but dog…followed me…" I paused, frustrated that despite all my progress, my speech was still so stilted.

They exchanged glances.

Julie took a deep breath. "Dad's gone overboard. I mean, tonight…Well, Rosy's here, fortunately, but he and Steiger are with Dad now. They've both known him for years..."

I could tell she was holding back tears, so I patted her leg gently.

That seemed to calm her down sufficiently so that she could continue. "Steiger called him into HQ. I had been comparing notes with Rosy, and when I came in, I heard Steiger telling him how the Boneys were massing outside. And Dad seemed…excited! I mean, he sounded as if he admired them. He actually said, 'They are so organized. They move in unison, and form orderly rows. I passed groups of them on the way in. They were lined up perfectly along the road. I almost felt they were about to salute me!'

Rosy actually asked him, 'But surely you're not saying you admire them, are you?'

And Dad answered, 'Well no, of course not. It's just that my job would be so much easier sometimes if the Living acted more like the Dead, that's all'.

I saw Rosy and Steiger exchange glances, and then I made my excuses, said good-bye, and came back here."

Here she paused and looked at me accusingly, then the burst out with the tears she had been trying to hold back.

"And when we got back, you were missing! We didn't know what had happened! For all I know, Dad had gotten to you! Don't you ever do that to me again."

I was stunned to hear her say that, and as I leaned in to comfort her, I looked over her head at Nora. Our eyes met as we both tried to comfort our crying friend.

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	19. Chapter 19 - R Speaks Up

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured and taken inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 19 – R Speaks Up

While Nora and I sought to comfort Julie, a soft knock was heard at the door.

Nora glanced at me as she jumped up to answer, and I ducked my head down. Nora flicked off the overhead light, just leaving on the two reading lamps.

When she opened the door, she seemed relieved at the sight of the visitor. "Rosy," she said, sounding genuinely glad to see him.

"May I come in?" a familiar man's voice asked quietly. Nora glanced at me, but I nodded. I had to find out if he was someone I could trust.

The man who walked in was of medium height, aged about fifty, and had laugh lines etched on his face. Tonight though, he looked weary. He walked quietly up to Julie and crouched in front of her, taking both her hands in his. "This has been a terrible few days for you, my dear. I'm so sorry."

"Oh, Rosy," Julie exclaimed, throwing her arms around him and started to sob.

He held her quietly and rocked her for a few minutes. "You know," he finally said, "you've always been like a daughter to me. You do know that, right?"

He pulled back, and reached for her chin, giving her a little nudge under it. "We'll get through this somehow, honey. I promise." He kissed her on the top of her head. She looked up at him and smiled, wiping away her tears.

Seeing his easy familiarity with Julie made my heart ached. I wished I could say such things.

Now came the challenge. Rosy stood up and extended his hand to me. "Colonel Rosso," he said. "I understand you saved Julie's life a few days ago?"

I held out mine gingerly, willing it not to be limp. He grasped it firmly and shook it. As he withdrew his hand, he looked at me steadily.

"We all owe you for saving her life," he told me. "Archie, isn't it?"

"Well…" I began. I felt as if I could trust this man, but Nora stepped in.

"Yes, we call him Archie," she interjected, "but he's kind of tired himself, to say nothing of a bit shell-shocked. He needs some rest, that's all."

Rosy stood still for a minute, seeming to digest this information, and then Julie continued. "But what you have to say, you can say in front of him. He knows a lot."

The Colonel raised an eyebrow at this, and I kept my eyes down. Even in the dim light of the room, my gray eyes would stand out.

Julie took a deep breath before speaking. "Rosy, it's Dad. I know there's something really wrong with him."

"Yes, you are right," said the Colonel. "Even General Steiger agrees. That's what I came to discuss with you. We've taken some extraordinary measures tonight. He's been in contact with the General from the Memphis Dome, and they all agreed with our plan.

He's been put in the medical unit for observation. He just needs some rest as he doesn't appear to be thinking clearly." Here he put up his hands, holding them out towards Julie in a placating manner. "Julie, it's just temporary. The other Generals agreed that I should take over dome leadership temporarily in his absence. We need our leaders to be sharp, and he's taken on too much…"

"No," she interrupted him. "We think it's something else."

"Something else? What do you think is wrong with your father?" asked the Colonel.

Julie turned to me. "Rosy, I really need you to keep an open mind. I wanted to discuss this with you days ago when you came to the house, but…R?"

I stood up, slowly. The Colonel looked between Julie and Nora and I, not understanding. Suddenly it hit him, and he automatically reached for his pistol.

But Nora beat him to it, having grabbed it from his hip holster before he could get it. "Sorry, Colonel. We've spent several days with him. I can't just let you shoot him out of reflex."

After a minute, the Colonel seemed to relax. "Well, this really is something. But we need to include the General in this conversation."

I nodded. "Yes…I agree."

Colonel Rosso looked stunned, but Nora jumped in. "Yes, he talks, he sleeps, and he has friends. Friends who looked for him after he was caught by our soldiers. And he's been with Julie for days, and hasn't bit her. Look at her, look at her eyes. Look at mine!"

The Colonel rubbed his jaw thoughtfully, and then held out his hand to Nora for his gun. Reluctantly, she handed it back to him and he put it in his holster.

"Let's go see the General, as I believe he's expecting us. Well, some of us anyway," he said, eyeing me.

We made our way over to the headquarters. The headquarters building was easy to find from wherever you were in the city. It was at the exact center, and all of the streets radiated outwards from it. I was nervous, and Julie grabbed my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Once we reached the circular building, Colonel Rosso knocked on an office door, and General Steiger opened it.

"I've brought them. I think we need to have a talk," he told the General.

The General nodded, as if he had expected this. He motioned for us to enter his office, and then pointed us to chairs. Sitting on the edge of his desk in front of Julie, he began. "Julie, something's wrong with your Dad. We wanted to tell you personally. We've taken the extraordinary measure of making Colonel Rosso the General under emergency powers…"

Julie interrupted him. "I know something's wrong with him," she stated firmly. "It's been going on for a while…

I interrupted. "I think…I know."

The General and Rosy looked at me. Julie tried to stop me, saying "Archie, not yet…" as she leaned towards me, stretching out her hand.

I pushed her hand back. "No. They need…to know. He's…becoming Boney. Without dying. I…knew when I …first saw him."

I paused, as giving this explanation had exhausted me.

"Son?" asked the General. "What are you saying?"

"I know…because…I'm changing too," I said carefully, waiting for another gun to be pulled on me. "Only…I'm…becoming Living human, while he's…becoming Dead."

The General sat perfectly still for a moment, his eyes never leaving me. Finally he leaned over, and touched my face, rubbing at the foundation.

"I noticed you were wearing makeup at dinner last night, but I thought you were just hiding scars under there," he said. "But you're not. It's much more…"

Julie broke in. "I knew. I've spent days with him. He could have killed me, but he never did. Instead, he's been changing. He's a little more human each day. He walks more quickly now, and listen to how he talks."

The General and Colonel exchanged glances. The Colonel spoke first. "I just found out when I went to give Julie the news about her father," he told the General quietly.

"It's not…just me. There are…others," I got out before pausing. They may shoot me, but maybe hearing there were others like me? Maybe they would listen.

"Others?" The Colonel asked.

"Your friend, right?" said Julie. "The one who came looking for you when you didn't go back to the airport after our soldiers caught you."

I nodded. "Yes, M. He says…lots...more, and the…Boneys are trying…to kill them."

I let that sink in, and then I let the bomb drop. "They need…shelter."

The room was silent.

I took a deep breath and was startled to realize that I had actually needed one. "They need…you," I said softly.

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	20. Chapter 20 - John G's Escape

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, to be used to train the children inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

I'm not dead personally, though I get awfully tired sometimes.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 20 – John Grigio's Escape

As General Steiger lifted the blinds to look out his office window, I could see that one of the aids was outside, parking a Jeep. He knocked at the door, and when Colonel Rosso answered it, the man entered, appearing quite shaken. Seeing the group of civilians inside the office, he visibly collected himself.

"What is the situation outside?" asked the General, standing up and coming out from behind his desk.

"The Boneys, though they aren't attacking, are surrounding the city in large groups, Sir," the soldier said. "The guards think…"

But we never learned what the guards think because a gunshot rang out. It sounded close, as if it was inside the city. We all started at the sound and looked around, shaken. Nora pulled out her gun, which I hadn't even noticed she was carrying, and primed it. She flattened herself against the wall before carefully pulled down a few slats of the blinds to look outside.

Meanwhile, the General had turned on his radio and begun to call outside. "Who's firing?" he demanded. "Who's firing? Has there been a breach? Sector 1, report!"

A crackle came over the radio, and a voice said, "This is Sector 4, Sir. We have a Boney loose in the city. He flashed past me and climbed up one of the stairwells on the southeast wall."

Just then we saw spotlights begin flashing across the fortified walls. A lone, lanky figure appeared between the observation towers outside the 5:00 sector, scrambling along the guards' catwalk that extended on top of the walls. He paused momentarily, holding a hand in front of his eyes, seeming to have been temporarily blinded by the search light.

The most striking thing about this scene was that the Boney was identifiable not just because of his speed and distinctive skull shape, but because he was still wearing human clothing-a General's uniform. He turned back towards the city and seemed to stare right at the General's headquarters. Then he moved to the far ledge, grabbed the catwalk's handrails, swung himself over and disappeared from view.

General Steiger snapped his walkie-talkie to "mute," and set it down in front of him, seeming to try to collect his thoughts.

"That was Dad, wasn't it?" said Julie quietly.

"Yes…" I answered. What else could I say?

The General's walkie-talkie came back on. "Sir, General Grigio left quarantine. One of his own men was on duty, and the General convinced the man he should release him from the wrist restraints so that he could relieve himself. We don't know where he is, but we are sending out a search team. We expect to find him shortly."

The General paused, looking at Julie and me, before answering. "Was the soldier bitten by the General?"

There was a crackle then a long pause on the other end. Finally the voice came back. "That is a negative, Sir. The soldier does not report any injuries."

Rosy's shoulders relaxed on hearing this, though he shook his head and sighed, clearly worried. Nora had moved to Julie, and put an arm around her while the General paused momentarily, gathering his thoughts before giving his next order.

"Quarantine him for the time being, for his own safety," ordered General Steiger. "Copy please."

"Quarantine will be undertaken."

Rosy turned to Julie, putting a hand gently on her wrist. "I'm sorry, dear. I really am."

"Why didn't we see it before now, Rosy?" Julie asked, beginning to sob. "Once R told me, it seemed so obvious!"

"We didn't want to admit it was even a possibility," Colonel Rosso replied. "R, take her back to the guest quarters. We're going to institute curfew and a lockdown. We don't need a panic. And somehow, despite all of those Boneys outside, I need to get back to my dome." He screwed up his face slightly at that.

He and the General exchanged glances then walked over to the map on the office wall, with the various routes between the domes highlit in red and the construction zones highlit in green.

"I might…be able to help you…there…" I said.

They turned to me, surprised. General Steiger was the first to speak. "Go on, son."

"My friends…they can…take you…" How was I to explain? I had to try, as his dome would need him.

"Where are your friends?" he asked.

"The tunnel. I found them earlier…" I took a deep breath, struggling not to stammer. "They are…hiding from Boneys…but will help."

I got it out. Now to see how the Living would react.

The two men exchanged glances, and then turned away, heads bowed close together, to exchange a few low words. Finally they turned back.

"How would they help us, do you propose?" the General asked.

"They could disguise him…and walk him back," I said.

"Yes. That could work!" Julie exclaimed. "That's how R got me out of the building during the salvage. He…" here she shuddered, remembering the blood I had used "…used his scent to mask mine. It worked. Several times."

The four Living looked between themselves, then finally nodded. "All right, we'll try it," said Rosy. "I'll go with them, if they'll take me."

I opened the office door and started heading in the direction of the tunnel, with the others following. I could hear Rosy and the General talking together in low voices as they kept a few paces behind us.

Once we arrived at the tunnel entrance, I gestured for the others to wait outside, and for only Rosy to enter with me. Just before we opened the gate, I turned to him. "Leave…weapon. Too…obvious," I told him. "Dead don't carry…guns."

He looked at me for several long seconds, then unholstered his pistol and handed it to Nora.

As Nora took the weapon, General Steiger said to both of them, "It's time you ladies to go back to your rooms."

The girls started to protest, but he only shook his head and stated firmly, "That's an order, for security reasons. We'll wait for your two to get there before opening the tunnel."

Nora nodded, as she understood. "We'll see you in a bit, R. Colonel Rosso, we'll hear from you tomorrow, when you get back to the other dome. Julie, let's go."

Stunned, Julie let Nora drag her away, saying, "Good-bye, R. I'll see you in a little bit," before leaving.

As soon as they were gone, we dragged back the heavy gate, and Rosy and I started down into the darkness together. As we descended further into the construction site, Rosy turned the lights on in each sector, which made our finding our path easier. But with the all the lights on, I was stunned to see how large a crowd M had brought. They all stood swaying, looking at us expectantly.

"My God," said Rosy in amazement. "All of these? They're all like you?"

"Yes." I walked up to M. "Take him…to other dome?"

M gestured to the construction worker from earlier. "Back to…other dome?" I asked, gesturing to Colonel.

The construction worker nodded and gave a slight bow, gesturing for Rosy to move ahead of him with his hand.

As Rosy stepped forward, he looked more closely at the Dead. "Fred?" he said slowly, recognition spreading across his face.

The man nodded sadly.

"You were on the crew when the tunnel collapsed and Kelvin died, weren't you?" Rosy said softly.

The man nodded again.

The Colonel looked over at me. "He can't talk, can he?"

"Not everybody…not yet," I stressed, looking at the worker. I envied him. He knew his own name at least, as Rosy had just told him.

Rosy took a deep breath, closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and smiled bravely. "Gentleman, lead on," he said. Turning back to me, he said, "Take care of Julie and the others?"

I nodded. I turned to M. "Half here…half with you?"

M looked at me and said, "Agreed." Then he clapped me on the back and turned towards his group. Dividing them down the middle with a hand gesture in the air, he said, "You…with R. You…with me." There was moaning and nodding, and the group split in half.

I watched as M turned to leave with Colonel Rosso, the Dead surrounding them as they began walking back down the dark tunnel. As I watched them leaving, I realized what an incredibly brave man Rosy was, and how trusting he was. I wasn't sure I could have done what he did. I was worried for him, as I was worried for us all. But somehow his act of trust gave me confidence that hope was possible for all of us, Living and Dead.

Shaking my head to clear it, I looked out at the remaining group, who were standing patiently in front of me. I pointed up, and said, "Back soon." They shuffled, but seemed content to stay.

So I headed back up the tunnel towards the city, and out under the night sky, where Julie, Nora and General Steiger waited for me. And where somewhere, on the other side of the wall, I was sure the former General John Grigio was waiting for me as well.

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(Did you notice Rosy gave his gun to Nora? Because she really needs another gun, right?)

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	21. Chapter 21 - Night Time Conversations

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured and brought inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 21 – Night Time Conversations

_I watched as M turned to leave with Colonel Rosso, the Dead surrounding them as they began walking back down the dark tunnel. As I watched them leaving, I realized what an incredibly brave man Rosy was, and how trusting he was. I wasn't sure I could have done what he did. I was worried for him, as I was worried for us all. But somehow his act of trust gave me confidence that hope was possible for all of us, Living and Dead._

_Shaking my head to clear it, I looked out at the remaining group, who were standing patiently in front of me. I pointed up, and said, "Back soon." They shuffled, but seemed content to stay._

_So I headed back up the tunnel towards the city, and out under the night sky, where Julie, Nora and General Steiger waited for me. And where somewhere, on the other side of the wall, I was sure the former General John Grigio was waiting for me as well._

I turned and made my way back to the front of the tunnel, to find General Steiger waiting for me with two soldiers.

"How did they get in?" he asked. "The tunnel wasn't finished. We had been digging towards a meeting point, but the collapse happened before the two sections were joined."

"Tunnel…collapse," I stated. "Workers…knew hole's entrance." I made some gestures with my hands, indicating digging through dirt with one's hands.

Steiger paled, and said, "There were survivors of the collapse that we missed?'

"Guess…so," I answered softly.

Steiger looked down, clearly shaken that someone had been left alive after the construction accident. Alive and left behind by the Living, and then fell victim to us, the Dead. But he lifted his head, recovering himself.

He looked at the guards. "We're going to have to reinforce this gate. Let's get to work," he said quietly, then turned to escort me back to the worker quarters.

When we got there, the outer doors were locked, but Nora and Julie opened when the General called out to them.

Julie stunned me by flinging her arms around my neck and sobbing. "When you left with Rosy, I wasn't sure I was going to see you again," she said.

I looked over at the General. "I…wasn't…sure myself, actually."

Nora looked over at me. "Wow. That last sentence was smoother than before."

I nodded. "I walk…more smoothly…too." Dang it, back into the old speech mode.

"I'm sure it's a process," Nora reassured me, seeming to pick up my frustration.

"Lock the doors and get some sleep," the General said. "Rosy is going to call me when he gets back to his dome. He's going to let M's group stay in the unfinished tunnel at his end of the dome just as they were staying in ours. Do you think they have a similar place on his end?

I shook my head. I didn't know.

"Well, we know they've got a walled off area for the construction site. It will have to do, until we can get the people living in the other dome comfortable with their new…I have to think on this."

As the General left, I lay down on the bed. I was surprised to find myself feeling rather heavy, as if it was hard to keep going. Once I lay down, my eyes closed of their own accord.

I heard, from what sounded like a long ways off, Nora saying to Julie, "Look. He's falling asleep…"

Slowly, I started to wake up. But instead of being in bed, I was lying on a grassy meadow under a blue sky. Leaning up on one elbow, I realized Perry was sitting next to me, hugging one knee to his chest, chewing on a blade of grass.

"Long time, no see," I told him, shading my eyes from the sun.

"It's go time, corpse," he replied. "At several levels. The Boneys have their new leader. You guys are outnumbered. What are you going to do?"

I looked over at him. "I don't know," I replied. I was pleasantly surprised at how easily my voice flowed. It matched my thoughts, for once.

"Well, I would say 'It's been real,' but of course, it hasn't," he stated. "Time for me to move on. If you guys survive the next day or two, I think you'll be OK. But first, you have to survive.

Then bring some joy back into the world. These people are barely living, right now."

I nodded. "I noticed. They look so pale, so grim. But they're all drawn by her laughter."

"Just keep her safe, man," Perry said, as he got up and started down the hill. Watching him go, I stood up. "Wait…"

Instead of answering, he just raised one hand to me and disappeared, fading into thin air.

I shook myself awake.

"R, R?" I heard Julie whispering. "R, are you OK?"

Struggling to wake up completely, I shook my head and looked up into her worried face. I saw Nora lying on the other bed, facing the wall, back to us.

"Just…dream," I replied.

"Move over, I'm tired too," she whispered back. I pulled closer to the wall, and she lay down on the twin bed next to me, with the blanket between us. She covered herself with her coat, tucking her face into my shoulder, and then peeked up at me. Though the room was dark, somehow her eyes managed to catch what little light existed.

"Really," she said softly. "What happened to Perry?"

I froze, as I had been dreading this moment, but found I needed to tell her the truth. She deserved that. "I…bit him." I said. "Then…he entered pen with us. Over…quickly."

There was silence for a few minutes. I lay waiting, expecting recriminations, expecting her to pull away from me, or even to go for one of Nora's guns. So her next questions surprised me.

"Is it true what they say," she asked, "that if you guys consume a person's brain, you get their memories?"

I stared up at the ceiling for a moment, wondering how to answer. "Yes. Bits. He…thought…of you. A lot."

There was silence, but she wasn't asleep. She put out her hand and began tracing my collarbone through my shirt.

"He showed you who I was?" she said softly. "Is that what you're saying?"

Now I had to struggle with my words. I had killed and eaten her boyfriend, yet we both loved her.

"We both…love you," I replied. "I have…some memories…"

She was silent.

"Sorry…but feel…his love for you," I told her. "So…strong."

She was silent. _Say something, please, say something_, I thought. Have I lost her? If so, could I blame her?

"Do you think that's what brought you back, made you like this?" she asked, rolling from her side onto her back, so that we now both faced the ceiling.

Relief surged through me at the sound of her voice again. "No...meeting you…brought me back." I struggled again, and pushed harder. "Others…picked up…from me. Like…reverse plague."

She looked up, holding her hand up in front of her face, twisting it, watching the play of the shadows and light.

"So contact with us, the Living, is reversing the plague? Is that what you think?" she asked.

"Not sure… my guess…"

"What's the last memory Perry showed you?" she asked.

"You….you were always…part," I replied. "Center…of his…world."

She turned to face me, leaning on one elbow. "He had pulled away near the end. Become distant. I don't understand."

"This world…draining," I told her. "Need…strength."

She snuggled up against me again. "I'm not saying it was OK to kill him, but then, you didn't know him. You were just hungry. Let's go to sleep."

I couldn't immediately fall asleep, but she did. I heard her breathing even out and deepen, and felt her body relax next to mine. Shortly after that, I fell asleep too. This time, there were no dreams.

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	22. Chapter 22 - Reflections & Conversation

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured by the Living soldiers, and brought inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 22 – Reflections and Conversation with a General

The next morning, when I woke up, I was alone on the little twin bed. Julie was gone. Nora was sitting at her desk reading, though, as I sat up, blinking in the light.

Nora smiled at me. "You two make a cute couple, you know?"

"She's…cute. We're ugly…pair," I replied.

"Nah," was Nora's one-word reply.

"What's…plan?" I asked, desperate to change the subject.

"The city is in lock-down," Nora replied seriously. "We're to wait to open the door of the guest quarters until we get notified it's safe. You should take a shower when she gets back. I swear you're beginning to develop 'boy B.O.' I'm going to have to find you some deodorant soap."

I smiled. Jokes were good. It meant Nora was beginning to relax more around me.

Julie soon returned, her wet hair wrapped in a white towel, carrying two neatly folder towels with an unopened bar of soap on top. She looked over at Nora, who just shook her head. "I'm good, I went while you two were in dreamland together," Nora replied.

So Julie turned back to me. "R?"

I nodded, deciding to take Nora's hint that I needed a shower, and Julie handed me the bathing necessities. I went down the hall and stuck my head into the shared bathroom to ensure it was empty before I entered.

This room wasn't like the one at Julie's house. It was more like the one M hung out in at the airport. The walls were a slate gray, and there was a bank of white sinks lining one wall, with small rectangular mirrors over each sink.

On the opposite wall, six toilet stalls and four shower stalls. The shower stalls had yellow plastic curtains. They all appeared empty, so I picked one with that still had a bit of water clinging to the curtain. As I approached, I could pick up Julie's scent ever so faintly.

This made me realize that I had been losing my sense of smell over the past few days. After my escape in the Grigio dome, I had used Julie's scent to locate the ladder to the stadium roof in the dark. At that time, I had only scented her once before, when she walked by the enclosure with the group of children. Now I could barely pick it up in a room that should have been flooded with it, buoyed by the steam from her recent shower.

Shaking these thoughts from my head, I pulled back the curtain of the stall and turned on the water. I didn't really care much about temperature, though I thought it felt cool. As I lathered up with the soap, I noted that this seemed simpler than it had at Julie's house. It appeared my coordination was improving even as my sense of smell was decreasing.

I let the water do its work quickly, as I had heard Julie comment to Nora that waster for bathing was somewhat limited. Wrapping the towel around my waist, I got out and walked over to the sinks. Although I knew that being in a common bathroom with my gray skin showing meant risking being found by another Living, I took a few moments to study my reflection before putting on my clothes.

Resting my hands on one of the slick porcelain of one of the sinks, I leaned forward to examine myself. I hadn't really studied my reflection at the airport, though I occasionally caught sight of myself on the reflecting glass panels along the terminal walls. So my only other memory of my appearance was from the bathroom at Julie's house, in the Grigio Dome.

Were there any changes on the outside to match the changes I felt internally? Looking in the mirror, it seemed to me that my lips had lost much of their bluish tinge. It seemed to me that their lining, the part just inside the mouth, was pink-ish. Sticking out my tongue, it didn't look quite the same deep shade of black as it had last time. It had been one of the things that worried me the most about eating in the communal hall. Every time Julie opened her mouth, I saw that soft pink tongue inside. And mine was black.

Among the other changes that I noticed, as I twisted my shoulders in front of the mirror, were that the blue veins which had been so prominent in my neck and jaw also appeared to have shrunk a bit, and finally, my eyes looked less fierce.

I made a scary face at myself in the mirror and was satisfied I could look terrifying if necessary. Might need the monster in the next few days, I thought to myself.

Having finished my inspection, I was turning around to leave when the bathroom door opened. I froze when I saw General Steiger was standing in the open doorway. He came in, closing the door behind himself.

"I had hoped to catch you before the make-up went on," he said quietly. "I wanted to see you for myself."

He walked up, flicking on the bright, overhead light. "May I?" he asked, reaching for my face. I nodded slowly.

"You're definitely dead," he said, tilting my face up into the light. Somehow, coming from him, it only sounded like an observation, not a criticism. "How long?"

I shook my head and shrugged.

"Do you have any memories of your former life?" he asked.

Forcing myself to speak, I said, "No. Flashes…recently…but never my name."

"Do you know where you came from?" he continued.

I shook my head again.

"You look as though you died recently," he commented.

"Not recent," I replied. "But…changing now…less blue…" I said, struggling for words, pointing to my lips.

Just then the bathroom door opened, and Julie came in. She gasped and stopped when she saw the General, then moved next to me, trying to get in front of me.

"It's OK," he told her reassuringly. "I just had a few questions for your friend here. He seems to think his lips are less blue. What do you think?"

Julie looked between us. "I think he's right. I've kind of been scared to look him in the face, actually," she said.

I hung my head, ashamed. What did I expect? She was a beautiful, Living girl, after all. Of course she found me repulsive.

"Mainly, because there is such a discrepancy between his actions and his appearance," she continued. "It was kind of like, a difference between his soul and his body, you know? So mostly, I've noticed he walks better, not shuffling as much, and he walks more quickly. His movements aren't' as jerky, and his speech has improved.

I looked up, surprised to hear such a thorough catalogue.

"And yes, I would say his lips look better," she continued. "Also, his eyes aren't quite as intense. The difference is kind of hard to describe."

"Wild," I offered.

They both looked at me.

"My eyes…not wild-looking…" I said.

"Yes, that's it," she exclaimed. "Initially, when I met him, he appeared to be, I don't know, really holding himself back. He looked strained. Veins bulging, stuff like that. Now, he looks relaxed."

The General nodded. "Well, get some make-up ready. I still want to have a few words with him."

Julie smiled, playing with the faucets of the sink.

"Alone, please," the General asked. "And I was coming to see you. Rosy called, he got back safely, and settled his escort into the tunnel until he can properly prepare his troops and citizens."

She nodded and left. Almost shuffling her feet, I noted.

Once she was gone, he went over by the window and leaned against the sill, pulling back the blinds to peer outside before continuing. "I want to ask your opinion," he finally said. "If John Grigio changed to Boney last night, what kind of memories do you think he has? After all, he ran that fortress from the beginning."

I felt a sudden chill, and closed my eyes briefly, thinking of the implications of John G becoming a Boney yet retaining all of his thoughts and memories.

The General looked at me steadily. "Not good?"

"Don't know. Didn't die…maybe kept memories?"

The General nodded, looking grim.

"Can you…get his Living…people…over here? Trucks?" I asked.

"I was just thinking about that. Do you think the Boneys are going to attack?"

I shrugged.

"I'll talk to Colonel Rosso about a transport. Thank you for your advice." He turned and walked towards the door.

I held up a hand. "Wait…"

He paused, hand on the bathroom door handle.

"Move…in groups…" I suggested.

"Excellent idea," remarked the General. "I was thinking the same thing."

After he left, I went to the door and tried to figure out a way to latch it from the inside. Nope, there wasn't a lock or even a chair to put under the handle to make the door difficult to open. So I went into one of the shower stalls and finished getting dressed.

As reassuring as it was to be consulted by a General, and to learn that he and I thought alike, I didn't need anyone else walking in on me when I wasn't fully dressed. As I thought this, I could almost hear M saying "Girl. Such… girl," like he used to do when he caught me being sensitive. I missed him.

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	23. Chapter 23 - Meeting the Residents

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured by the Living soldiers and taken inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 23 – Meeting the Residents

After my unexpected conversation with General Steiger in the communal shower room, I finished getting dressed and went back to the room I shared with Nora and Julie.

"Steiger busted us while you were showering, R," Nora informed me as I walked in. "We knew you were supposed to be sleeping in another room, but we didn't want anyone walking in on you, 'ya know? And nobody else is staying here, so we didn't see the harm of all three of us staying in the same room.

But he wants you in one across the hall. Something about feeling like a father now that Julie's Dad is…MIA."

Julie looked down at her hands as Nora spoke.

I felt a lot of sympathy for her. Losing both Perry and her Dad in a matter of days? That would be devastating. "Sorry," I offered. And I was. Sorry for so many things, including the part I had played. Sorry for the world we lived in. Or she Lived in. The one I just haunted now.

"Actually, R, you're more alive, in some ways, than so many of us. You're…in process, awakening to things. Striving. I'm glad you're here," Julie said, leaning over and kissing me on the cheek. I don't know who was more surprised, Nora or me. At least Nora had the decency to close her mouth quickly and turn back to pretending to study her book.

"Let's get you ready to meet my world," Julie said brightly. I smiled, trying to generate enthusiasm for the ordeal I was sure to come.

A knock came at the door. One of the soldiers said, "Last call for breakfast."

Nora turned to us and said, "Well, I'm not missing that. Are you two coming, or am I grabbing something for you, Julie?"

Julie simply replied, "Coming," then leaned back to look at me appraisingly. She paused, and said, "What about you, R? When's the last time you ate?"

I had been dreading this question and tried to figure out the best way to answer. "Nothing, or rather nobody, appeals," I finally stammered out. "But I am feeling…low energy."

Nora and Julie exchanged looks. Finally Nora said, "Well, if you're transition, maybe try some breakfast food. It's starchy, should be the least difficult on your system. Let's see, OK?"

Julie giggled. "Nurse Nora," she sang.

Nora grimaced. "Well, if what's going on is correct, we're going to have a whole new wave of patients, all with conditions no one has ever treated before. All these people transitioning from Dead to Living. R, if you let me study you, I might be in a better position to work with the others. Deal?"

I nodded, as I hadn't thought of the possibility I could be useful, outside of being strapped to a dissection table. I grimaced, remembering the Dead I had passed on that first morning when I was brought into the city, and shuddered, recalling my own terrifying nightmares of having taken his place on the table.

Once the girls were ready, we walked over to the Commissary. As we approached, I looked around carefully for the guard dog from the previous night. Fortunately, I didn't see it. When we entered the crowded room, the three of us picked up bowls of hot oatmeal, and Nora grabbed some of the breakfast MRE's.

"We'll try a few things," she said. As we looked around for a place to sit, she commented, "Man, it's really crowded in here. There are people just leaning against the walls. Wondering what's going on?"

I felt very self-conscious, as the only other time I had been here I had been wearing a helmet . This time, I didn't even have a hat on. All that I was, gray skin and blue-veined neck included, was on view. We started attracting some looks, and soon all conversation stopped. As the room got quiet, I looked around and saw the other Living were staring at me.

I ducked my head down. I had known this wasn't going to be easy, but I decided to show the same trust Rosy had shown last night when he walked with a group of the Dead. I was going to be seen for what I was by a group of the Living.

I felt someone coming up behind us, and then started as a hand was placed on my shoulder.

I turned my head to find General Steiger standing behind me. It had been his hand that I felt on my shoulder. But he wasn't looking at me. He was facing the assembled group of the Living.

"Attention, please!" he called out. "Although, I believe my friend R here, has already succeeded in getting your attention all by himself."

There was a loud muttering, which Steiger quelled with a motion from his hands. I also heard the distinctive click of guns being cocked. It was odd, but I felt as if my pulse was starting to race at that sound. My body seemed to remember the sensation, though my heart no longer beat.

"Most of you have noticed the General's daughter, Julie, and her two friends, Nora and R, or Archie, over the past few days," Steiger continued. "Now some of you are getting a good look at R for the first time. I only found out about this myself a few hours ago.

It seems that something is going on out there beyond the walls. We've all seen the massing of the Boneys. But it's the…" here he paused.

"R," he said, "what do you like being called?"

"We say…Dead," I replied.

"Thank you, R," the General replied. "The Dead, those like R, seem to be…recovering, I believe is the best word for what I'm witnessing. Now obviously, we're keeping a close watch on the situation. But last night, a group of…the Dead, led by one of R's friends, escorted Colonel Rosso back to the Grigio Dome."

The room, which had been silent, began to buzz with conversation at this last comment. People were mostly shaking their heads in disbelief, but it seemed that nearly everyone continued to stare at me.

General Steiger put up his hands for silence, and it was instantly quiet again. "Colonel Rosso called me a few minutes ago to tell me that he arrived safely, thanks to his escort."

Now the General turned to me. "R, would you like to say something?"

All eyes were on me, and the room was dead silent, waiting.

"I don't…want to…be…like this. Changing… back, I hope." Then I shook my head.

The General put his hand back on my shoulder.

"Nicely stated, my friend," said the General reassuringly. "As you can see, R can talk and has feelings. We also did a little strategy discussion a few minutes ago. He gave me some insights that I will be discussing with my officers.

We will continue being vigilant about the Boneys. He agrees something is going on. But for the time being, while we won't trust an unknown Dead, we won't shoot on sight."

I lifted my hand, and the General acknowledged me with a nod. "Coming here…for shelter…" I said.

The General was silent for a moment. He bowed his head, thinking.

"OK," he finally said. "We are going to begin to set up a corridor, using concrete barriers, inside the fortress from the front gate to the tunnel. If any of the Dead appear at the front gate seeking shelter, they are to be allowed to move to the tunnel. They can stay there until the situation can be evaluated further.

Additionally, and importantly, we have decided it is necessary to evacuate the Grigio Dome for security reasons. The first transport will be arriving later today. We may be doubling up in our efforts to house these evacuees. I hope everyone will volunteer to take in some of the residents.

Questions?"

Though it took a few minutes, soon hands were raised, and a jumble of voices filled the room again. There were a lot of question, of course. All eyes were on me, but I felt Julie slip her hand into my under the table, and give me a reassuring squeeze. I felt a smile trying to form on my face. Whether it showed, I didn't know.

PLEASE REVIEW. I WILL SEND AN EXCERPT FROM THE NEXT CHAPTER TO ALL REVIEWERS. I'm going to be traveling later this week. I'm supposed to have Wi-Fi where I'm going, but last year it didn't really work. So if I don't answer reviews right away, just know that I will as soon as I get back to my home computer.

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	24. Chapter 24 - First Arrivals

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, and brought by soldiers into the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 24 – First Arrivals

_"Questions?"_

_Though it took a few minutes, soon hands were raised, and a jumble of voices filled the room again. There were a lot of question, of course. All eyes were on me, but I felt Julie slip her hand into my under the table, and give mine a reassuring squeeze. I felt a smile trying to form on my face. Whether it showed, I didn't know._

Although there were a few questions, most of what was being said was a series of increasingly angry recriminations for allowing a Dead to move freely in the city without anyone knowing.

I kept telling myself to stand tall, and not shrink back at the barrage of anger and hate that was flowing my way. But I was as terrified as I could ever remember being. At one point, the General signaled a soldier to step in front of me. Once the soldier took his place before me, with his two feet apart, and his gun though, though pointed at the ground, still ready to be used, the tone of the meeting changed. The presence of this guard seemed to remind the Living that they were under military rule, and that the General was in charge. They quieted down, and I saw a few leaving through a back door.

Finally it was over. After the General left the commissary, Julie, Nora and I exchanged nervous glances. That ordeal had been neither expected nor easy. I was still standing, and Nora slid her tray in front of me.

I sat back down at the table automatically. Looking at the oatmeal on her tray, U lifted a spoon and put a bite into my mouth. It didn't taste right, but it wasn't as terrible as the last time I tried Living food. I forced a few swallows down, while the girls sat on either side of me. I noticed that Nora only had one hand visible, as she had her gun on her lap under the table, finger on the trigger.

After watching the other Livings' reactions to me for a few more minutes, the girls started eating as well. We finished quickly, though, and soon left. It was quiet as we walked out, but we heard the buzz of talking begin behind us as soon as we stepped through the door. Nora walked in back of me as we made our way back through the narrow streets, past the brightly painted houses to our guest quarters.

Once we reached the safety of our room, Nora leaned up against the door, holding it closed with her back, and then bent forward, hands on her knees.

Julie collapsed into the little chair at the desk.

"Well…that was intense," Julie said. Nora exhaled loudly, and then nodded her agreement.

"And unexpected," added Nora flatly. "But still, I guess the General figured the best approach was to just to 'rip off the Band-Aid,' so to speak. R, how do you feel about what happened in there?"

"Odd. Never expected…so public?" I said. Then I took a deep breath, forcing myself to concentrate. "I ate," I added proudly.

"I saw that," replied Julie. "How did it taste?"

"Not great," I said, focusing hard on not stuttering. "See if it…stays down." I shook my head in frustration at the return to broken speech.

Julie seemed to guess what was going on in my head, as she leaned forward and stroked my arm reassuringly. "It will take time, that's all," she said.

Nora moved to the window, pulling back the little curtain. "Steiger made quite an impact. If only in 'outing' you," Nora said. "There's a group outside, standing and talking, staring at the bunker. Wonder if we should call him?"

Julie looked over at her, a bit sadly. "I don't think that will be necessary. After all, he's not my Dad," she said.

Nora glanced over at Julie, clearly puzzled by her remark.

Julie took a deep breath, fighting back tears. "I think they trust him, this General Steiger. With my Dad…people were starting to get edgy. With good reason – and look what happened! R knew about it too, before it happened. Didn't you?"

Julie turned to me. I could only nod. "I'd never seen it…but…he wasn't all Living…at your house…"

"I thought something was troubling you. After he left, you seemed to be looking after him, worried," Julie said softly.

"Scared, really. For you," I added shyly.

"That's sweet," she replied, keeping her head down.

So she didn't want to reply to my attempts to be affectionate. What did I expect? I swallowed and looked down at my hands, flexing my fingers. They seemed to be more…limber. Inspecting them more closely, it occurred to me that I should really clean my nails. I wondered if I became more "human," would she lose interest in me? Or could there ever be a possibility that she might return my affections, if I became full Living like she was? I wasn't sure of her feelings, at this point.

She paid attention to me, but was it because she was just naturally kind-hearted? I was sure that was what had happened initially, when we met on the roof. I was like some kind of wild animal she had found and wanted to return to its "natural habitat," outside the fortified city.

Now, was I simply some kind of experiment, someone to keep a close eye on as a way of judging if the plague might possibly be shifting course?

I didn't know. When I turned to look at her, she was lying on the bed with her eyes closed, and had Nora had plopped back down at the desk. Both had picked up books, and Nora was reading, while Julie had hers lying on her stomach, open somewhere in the middle.

I remained standing and looked out the window at the crowd that was slowly increasing in size in the street outside.

We stayed that way for another hour, until the first of the transports came in.

General Steiger had mentioned in the meeting at the commissary earlier that the soldiers had been working to construct two entrances inside the city. One for the Living evacuees, and the other for the Dead seeking shelter.

When the phone rang, both girls jumped, and Nora reached over to answer it. It was the General, she mouthed at me, and he wanted to speak to me on the phone.

When I took the phone, he said, "The first group of evacuees is about to approaching. This was your idea, R. I want you here to see the incoming refugees. It's time people got used to seeing you."

The three of us walked to the gate and waited with the General for the transport. We heard the rumble of a diesel engine on the other side of the gate, and then the soldiers opened the gate and pulled aside some of the barricades to let the large truck in. We watched as a grizzled truck driver got out of the cab and went to the passenger side. As he opened the door, I was stunned to see him helping M out of the cab. I started as I felt the sharp intake of my own breath.

As M climbed down, the truck driver told us, "Colonel Rosso suggested I bring him with me in the cab. He pointed out some very useful information I would like to share with you if I may, General."

The General nodded, and appeared to be watching the transaction between the Living driver and the Dead M carefully.

As M stood up, regaining his balance, the truck drive extended his hand to him. "Thank you, friend," said the driver.

M looked startled, but returned the handshake and said, "Nice…working for a change."

The General looked pleased, and when M spotted me, he swayed happily for a few seconds before starting towards me with…a grin on his face! He was smiling!

When he reached me, he clapped me on the back. "Good…to see you," he said.

I pointed to his face. "Smiling?"

He nodded.

"Still bent…from Boneys," I said, looking at his forehead.

M reached up and gave his forehead a shove. "Better?"

I nodded, and then looked at the girls.

Julie and Nora were standing behind us wide-eyed, watching M try to fix his head.

"Sorry," said M. He looked at me expectantly.

Realizing that of course he wanted introductions to the girls, I said, "M, this is...Julie…"

"Hello…again," said M with a bow.

"And Nora…"

Clearly this was the moment M had been waiting for. He looked at Nora, biting his lip, and then said only one word: "Beautiful."

Nora blushed. "Pleased to meet you," she said, sounding as though she were choosing her words carefully. "You're the friend who came into the city looking for R?"

M nodded.

"Well then, I am especially pleased to make your acquaintance," she said, extending her hand to him. He looked at it for a minute, and then put his hand out to shake hers.

As this introduction went on, the soldiers had been helping the refugees down from the back of the truck. I noticed that Julie had been watching them as Nora and M were talking. I could almost feel her counting them off in her head. She was smiling occasionally, as it looked like she saw someone she knew.

"Miles must have brought over forty in that truck. Couldn't have been comfortable in there, but he did it," Julie said in an admiring voice. "And this first group was mostly children, with a few of the mothers."

The General and the truck driver, who had been talking quietly while the Living disembarked from the back of the truck, had also been watching us.

"We're going to my situation tent for a briefing," the General told us, "and then Miles is going to get gas and go back for more people."

Julie walked forward. "Miles?" she called after him.

The truck driver excused himself to the General and made his way over to us. "Sorry to hear about your father, Miss," he told Julie. "Whatever happened, he was a good man."

Julie smiled, fighting tears again. "Thanks. We don't know what happened, and if R can come back, maybe Dad can too. I've got to hope," she said.

Miles nodded sympathetically.

"You brought the kids first?" Nora asked him.

"We were pretty sure we would get the first truck through, as I usually make a run between the two domes on each trip," Miles replied. "But if John Grigio starts to notice multiple trips back and forth…we're not sure what will happen."

"Who's next?" Nora asked.

"They're deciding that now," Miles said, rubbing the back of his head thoughtfully. "It's a hot debate over there, and a hard first test of General Rosso's leadership."

"Ladies," he said, "the staff is waiting for a report from me, and then I want to get going while it's still light." With that he turned to leave with the General.

"Well, now we have an excuse to room together," said Nora brightly. "They'll need the other room for the incoming people." As she was speaking, Nora's pager went off, and she pulled it from her belt to check the message.

"Gotta go," she told us. "Medical is paging me. The Nurse Practitioner said they would be calling me for any procedures."

As she started to leave, though, she turned back to us. "M, it was a pleasure to meet you," she said carefully.

M smiled then stepped closer to her, clearly trying not to drag his feet. He reached for her hand, which she held out cautiously. He bent over it, kissing the back. "Pleasure…all mine."

Julie giggled watching, and Nora shot us a look, then left.

M came back over. "She smells…as beautiful as…she looks," he stated. Then looked at Julie. "Compliment. Not hungry. Well….won't eat anyway," he said, starting to babble a bit.

Julie giggled again, and M gave a goofy grin, looking relieved.

"Going back…with him," he said, pointing in the direction Miles had gone.

"Maybe…shower?" I suggested softly, glancing at Julie.

Julie looked at me, and then said to M, "I'm sure I can find some clothes for you, if you want. Do you think you have enough time to freshen up before you leave again?"

M got a strange look on his face before asking, "Peach body wash?"

Julie looked startled, and I laughed.

"Joke," said M.

And so it was that the three of us walked together towards our bunker. It felt strange but good to be mixing my friends from the two worlds, Living and Dead. Or maybe, "Living-Transitioning" would be a better term? Simple "Dead" no longer seemed an adequate term for our current state.

Looking at the Living on high alert all around me, I couldn't help but thinking about who was missing. The one whose fate seemed tied to all of our futures: John Grigio.

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If you would like more on the truck driver Miles' backstory, please check out my other Warm Bodies story, Seeking Life. Miles' story is Chapter 5.

Also, I will be traveling at the end of the week. There may be a delay in sending previews, if I get them after I leave on Friday. I will send the previews on Monday when I return.

I really do appreciate all of the reviews and support that you guys have shown for this story.

Waiting for John G as Boney? Stay tuned…next chapter…


	25. Chapter 25- Battle Lines

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured and taken by soldier into the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 25 – Battle Lines

_And so it was that the three of us walked together towards our bunker. It felt strange but good to be mixing my friends from the two worlds, Living and Dead. Or maybe, "Living-Transitioning" would be a better term? Simple "Dead" no longer seemed an adequate term for our current state._

_Looking at the Living on high alert all around me, I couldn't help but thinking about who was missing. The one whose fate seemed tied to all of our futures: John Grigio. Both as General, and as Julie's Dad._

Once we reached the guest quarters, I showed M around while Julie went out in search of clothes for him. M looked around the halls with barely concealed excitement, clearly enthusiastic about the prospect of being able to stay in such a place.

"Just like…living again," he said quietly. I nodded in response, understanding his longing for our old life, before we became Dead.

Once we gathered the towels and soap, I stayed in the bathroom while M took his shower. After he got out, I watched as he spent a little time trying to adjust his forehead in front of the mirror.

"Frigging Boneys," he said. Julie had come to the door while he was showering, and brought several pairs of the grey slacks that all of the men seemed to wear, and a polo-style shirt. After seeming to give up on his face, M spent a bit of time trying on several pairs, before he found one that almost fit, and then looked in the mirror again.

"Just need…my name back," he said softly.

I bit my lip, as I knew exactly what he meant. A name was such an essential part of one's being. Not having known it for so long…well, I hoped that would be over soon. Then I remembered something I thought he should know.

"Nora shot…Boney king," I told him.

He turned his head to me. "Really? Tough…lady. And pretty."

"You said 'beautiful'," I reminded him.

He looked at me. "You…didn't pause…just then."

I thought for a second and nodded. "Been working on…it." I shook my head in frustration at the pause that had crept back into my speech.

"Keep…working," he said with a laugh.

We both stared at the sound he had just made.

"You laughed?" I asked.

"I did," he replied. "Now you?"

So I tried. But I couldn't think of anything funny. I struggled, but couldn't.

"Later," said M. "Must go…to truck."

I nodded, and we went out together. It was still easier to just nod with M. He understood.

On our way back to the front gate, we took a few minutes to show M a little of the city. He was clearly taken, just as I had been, with the colorful layout of the city, and the small green parks scattered throughout. I noticed that women were pulling the children off of the playground equipment and holding them as we passed, but I tried not to get upset. Of course it would take time for them to get used to the idea of our being among them.

When we got back to the front gate, Miles was waiting by his truck, and he seemed relieved to see M. He looked at M curiously, taking in the wet hair.

"For…the ladies," M said.

Miles laughed. "And here I was counting on your stench to keep them off of me," he said, chuckling.

M just shrugged, and Miles helped him back in to the cab. "See you…soon," M called down to me from the cab as Miles climbed in on the driver side.

Miles put the truck in reverse, and the soldiers opened the gate to let him pass. As he drove through, I noticed that a few of the soldiers climbed inside the back of his truck, with extra guns slung over their shoulders.

"I wonder how many trips he can make before they notice?" said the General, startling me. He had come up so quietly I hadn't heard him. And not only that, I hadn't noticed his Living scent. Unconsciously, I bent my head towards him, taking a sniff, then jerking my head back when I realized what I was doing.

Which, of course, he noticed. "I don't smell as good as Miss Grigio?" he asked.

"Not that," I said. "It's just…didn't notice your…approach."

"Good," he said. "Humans, I mean, the Living, don't use our sense of smell that way. I think it's just another sign of your changing body."

As the soldiers rearranged the barricade after Miles left, I noticed that some Dead were standing patiently by the gate, swaying. They were being admitted in small group.

"How many?" I asked the General.

"Hmmm?" he asked. Following my glance, he said, "Not sure. They've been coming to the gates all day. That tunnel is big, so we can admit quite a few."

"We'll fight with you," I told him.

"I hoped you would say that," the General replied. "I'm not sure how quickly my soldiers will accept them, but our numbers are low, even with the Grigio Dome reinforcements, and the Boneys seem to be massing outside. I'll think they'll come around more quickly if they work side-by-side with your friends. They are well aware we need help in our defense of the city."

We watched the Dead slowly passing in front of us, looking around with curiosity mixed with amazement, just as M had done a short time before.

As the day passed, Miles and M returned with two more truckloads of evacuees. All of the children were now out, and the soldiers and remaining adults planned to do a convoy of vehicles in order to get needed equipment to us. The Lieutenant in charge of the evacuation suggested that on this last trip, M stay with us so that there would be more room for soldiers on this last trip.

M and Miles had a small conversation off to one side, and finally M stayed with us while Miles drove off with two soldiers in the cab.

I asked M if he minded being left behind on the last run.

Looking over at Nora, he said, "No. They know…the way now…"

But the idea of a final convoy sounded ominous to me. "Don't like it…attracting too much…attention," I told Julie.

"I agree, but they've decided the residents don't want to spend the night separated. There really aren't enough left in the other dome to maintain the necessary defense," she replied. "Guess this might lead to the big battle, huh?"

I agreed. This could be bad.

Everyone seemed to be anxious about this last transfer of people. From the radio, we heard General Rosso say that they were on the road, and were about one third of the way from their dome.

Twilight was falling, and restlessness was spreading through the city, as nearly the entire population of the Living had come outside to await the final convoy.

Suddenly there was a high-pitched mechanical squeal over the intercom system, following by a strange, rasping voice. The next words spoken brought my worst fears to life: "I want to talk to my daughter. Put Julie on."

It was John Grigio. And he clearly still had his Living memories.

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	26. Chapter 26 - John G's Demands

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, and brought by soldiers inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 26 – John G's Demand

_Then a voice came over the intercom system. A strange, rasping voice , saying "I want to talk to my daughter. Put Julie on."_

There was a stunned silence as it seemed everyone around me stopped breathing. Julie froze, listening to her father's voice. Then General Steiger emerged from the crowd. He picked up a megaphone and said, "John, this is Max Steiger. Talk to me."

John's voice continued, pointedly ignoring Steiger. "Julie, come out to the gate and talk to me. We can be together. We'll be safe this way. Nothing can happen to us."

His voice was haunting and terrifying. Every word sounded less human, as if he was struggling to keep up a pretense.

Julie finally seemed to snap out of her haze, and started to walk towards the gate, but General Steiger stopped her, grasping her arm firmly.

"John, she stays in here with me," General Steiger replied. "If you want to see her, come to the gate, I'll let you in. We can all talk."

After a moment, the voice came back. "We have your little evacuation group surrounded. Julie, if you come out, I'll let them go."

Julie closed her eyes. "I can't be responsible for those deaths," she said quietly.

"Please hurry, my men are getting hungry," the voice urged. I saw her wince and bite her lip at this. Nora looked concerned, and kept looking between Steiger and Julie. She and Steiger seemed to come to an understanding without having spoken a word, and he released Julie as Nora put an arm around her shoulder.

Seeing that Julie had Nora, I motioned to the General to turn off the megaphone. He did, and looked at me intently. "Put my guys on the back of one of the flatbed trucks," I told him. "We'll go out to meet John Grigio and his Boneys, and bring in the evacuees. Your soldiers can come behind us."

"You're willing to die for them, for us?" the General asked.

I nodded.

"And you're sure about your friends?" he asked.

"We all…will," I replied softly but firmly.

The General got back on the megaphone. "John," he said, "I'm talking to Julie. She's determined to come, but I want a few minutes with her first. Please wait."

I could hear his Lieutenant talking to the group that John Grigio had trapped on the road via walkie-talkie. He informed them of the situation, and then said we were coming out to get them.

"Wait," I said. "How close…to the tunnel?"

The General looked at me and nodded, understanding my plan instantly.

He turned to his men. "We're going to work the tunnel. Take equipment down there, and I'll tell Rosso to pull his group closer to the tunnel. We can meet them there. That way we'll have a unified force, which will be better than us trying to reach them, with the Boneys in between us. This way we can keep them from be cut off. "

I heard General Steiger talking to Colonel Rosso on his radio. Rosy had been making the final trip over with the last group. When he told him that John Grigio had asked Julie to come out so that the evacuees wouldn't be hurt, there was a long pause. I can only imagine what Rosy thought of that.

Finally the General came to me. "I can't send all of the soldiers with you, as I need to defend the city. I'm going to remain here, but Lieutenant Holton will go with you." He gestured to the Lieutenant, who was standing at attention beside him.

As I looked closely at him, I could tell he hadn't been won over yet, but was obeying orders. How would he act in a clinch?

"Pleased…to be able…to help," was all I said.

Lieutenant Holton nodded stiffly to me, and we took a Jeep from the gate to the construction site, and started down the tunnel together.

As it got darker, I could hear the rumblings of the equipment being used to transport the Dead ahead of us. I could also hear the sounds of equipment being moved behind us.

They were sealing the entrance, so that if our line broke, the Boneys couldn't access the Dome. We wouldn't be able to go back this way. If it meant Julie staying safe, I was OK with that. I looked ahead grimly.

Soon I could smell fresh air, which meant we were near the opening to the ground above. The soldiers reached down to help me up. They had set up ladders from the earthen ground of the unfinished tunnel to the hole to the road above. And they had earthmovers behind us, ready to seal the opening as soon as we moved through it.

As I stepped out into the evening light, I saw a mass of Dead and Living soldiers, silently standing side-by-side, with trucks forming a kind of barricade in front. The barricade wouldn't be much good, thought, as the Boneys would be able to swarm such an obstacle in seconds. We were badly outnumbered, and it was clear that everyone there knew it.

That's when I saw the Boney in uniform. It was John Grigio, now full Boney, still wearing just his General's shirt. The pants must have slipped off of him, I thought, as his body changed and there wasn't enough flesh to hold them up. It was a strange sight.

Looking at me with his empty black eyeholes, I felt as if he were boring inside of my head.

I had so many questions. And no time.

Everything was silent and still for some reason, in a sort of calm before the storm.

Then his mouth opened. "Julie," he rasped out.

From behind me, a sweet voice replied, "Daddy, I'm here."

Julie had followed us. And with my decreased sense of smell, I never realized it.

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Just three chapters after this! Then an Epilogue, Chapter 30. Quite the journey since last February, when I first started posting. I really appreciate all the reviews the story has received, and all those who marked the story with favorites and alerts.


	27. Chapter 27 - The Battle

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, taken by soldiers into the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 27 – The Battle

_Everything was silent and still around us. _

_Then the Boney wearing a general's uniform shirt's mouth opened. "Julie," he rasped out._

_From behind me, a sweet voice replied, "Daddy, I'm here."_

_Julie had followed us. And with my decreased sense of smell, I never realized it._

The Boney that had been John G stepped forward and leapt up onto a Jeep, his black eye holes fixed on Julie. I realized that he was their leader, as the other Boneys watched him, their heads fixed in his direction as one.

It was now full dark, and I could barely see Julie. She was just a pale glint, a bit of ghostly yellow hair and white face behind me, standing by the tunnel entrance. One of the soldiers turned on the headlights of a Jeep, which almost magically lit up the space between Julie and the Boney, creating a path of blazing light in the darkness, like a carpet between them.

I couldn't let Julie go to him. I started towards her, but Lieutenant Holton grabbed my arm.

"I have orders to get you back," he said simply when I turned to him, startled he touched me.

"What about… her?" I demanded, tugging at my arm, trying to break his grip.

"She had orders as well," the Lieutenant said abruptly. "Whether she follows them is up to her."

"You mean… the General knew… she was coming?" I asked, shocked.

"I didn't say that. This isn't easy for me either," he muttered in a frustrated tone.

Meanwhile, Julie had started walking towards John G. The silence was broken by what seemed to be a low hissing coming from all around us. The assembled Boneys were making their trademark noise, as they appeared to be watching this Living – Boney transaction with a great deal of interest.

As Julie got closer to her father, there was a commotion behind me. M had climbed out of the hole in the construction site, and moved into the light from the Jeep. He was pushing himself as hard as he could, trying to get to Julie. Julie seemed to hesitate slightly at the sight of her father, now only recognizable by the uniform shirt he was wearing, which gave M the time he needed to get to her.

Finally reaching her, M grabbed her around the waist, lifting her off of her feet and carrying her back towards the tunnel. I heard him hiss to the other Dead as he passed, "Save her. At all costs."

The eerie sound of the Boney's hissing was broken as John Grigio opened his mouth and let out a terrifying roar.

The Dead lurched towards the Boneys as one. Though they formed a disorganized line, their courage was impressive. Their faces looked determined as the moved toward what would most likely be their final deaths.

John G clearly became furious as he watched his daughter being carried off by M, and he nimbly leapt off of the Jeep he was standing on, going after Julie and ignoring the Dead headed towards him.

From behind us, I heard a shotgun blast, and watched John G's head exploded, pieces flying outwards in every direction. Julie screamed, and I turned to see Nora behind me, reloading her shotgun.

"Not going to happen, not now, not ever," she was muttering.

Nora backed towards M, who was still holding a now struggling Julie, reloading the gun as she moved. As she caught up to him, I heard him say, "We're quite…the team."

The Dead had now reached the Boneys, who seemed to be wavering as they saw their new leader lying on the ground headless, still wearing his General uniform. The Dead lunged forward again, and the Boneys began to defend themselves, yanking off the advancing Dead's arms, heads, and other limbs. They seemed strangely hesitant in their movements though, barely seeming to know how to act.

Seeing their allies being attacked, the soldiers started firing on the Boneys. They moved forward carefully, keeping the cars between themselves and their enemies, shooting for Boney heads, trying to avoid hitting their new allies, the Dead.

As I stumbled towards Julie and M, I held out my arms for her. M released her, and she ran to me, letting me embrace her as she clung to me.

I closed my eyes as I enfolded her in my embrace, tipping my head down to smell her hair. Though the time between seeing her and Nora's shot could only have been a few minutes at most, they had felt like hours.

"Don't do that to me…again," I said softly, inhaling her scent.

Suddenly I felt something hit me in the back. I staggered forward from the impact and was struck by a wall of pain.

Pain!? This was something I hadn't experienced in years.

Julie looked up, obviously having felt the impact as well, and put her arm around my back. When she pulled her hand back, it was covered with red. I looked around and saw the soldier who had shot me, still pointing his gun in my direction.

Things seemed to begin to happen in slow motion, but I saw Lieutenant Holton gesturing at him, yelling "Why?"

And the man saying, "It looked like he was biting her…"

I turned back and looked at M and Nora, who were staring at me in horror, while M was saying, "Red?" referring to my blood on Julie's hands.

I dropped to my knees, unable to stand with this feeling of pain overwhelming me. I started choking, and feeling I needed air, but couldn't get it. Julie knelt in front of me, holding me up, screaming for help as she tore off her jacket and put it against my back in an effort to stop the bleeding.

I felt myself being lifted and carried, while the sounds of gunfire were everywhere around me. Julie was crying, and I could hear Nora saying, "No, no, no! He can't come back to life just to die!" and then everything started to fade.

I woke up to find myself nearly blinded by intensely bright lights above me. As I blinked, my eyes adjusting to the lights, I began to make out faces above me, partially covered with blue masks. I could feel terrible pain and pressure, all around me. I also felt unfamiliar sensations inside of me, throbbing and pulsing, from different parts of my body. The few places that didn't hurt felt very cold. Was this really what it felt like to be Living?

I vaguely heard Nora saying, "R? They're operating on you, trying to repair the damage done by the bullet. Can you hear me? You need to let them know you can understand."

I tried to nod, and then realized my head movement was restricted, and I had a tube in my throat. I felt a horrific pain in my abdomen, and when I looked down at my chest, I watched in horror as I saw a hand using a knife to slice into my chest.

I was living my nightmare, the one I had been having since meeting Julie. Was this a dream or was it real?

With a shock I realized it was real. Though I struggled, I felt the knife continue to cut open my chest. I saw more rather heard Nora trying to stop the surgeon, and being pulled back. Her eyes met mine, and I saw that they were full of tears, and then she was gone.

I began to wonder if I was being vivisected like that other Dead I had seen on my first day in the Grigio dome.

Finally, mercifully, things began to go dark, as the pain once again overwhelmed everything else. All I could hear was my own breathing. Then I heard nothing.

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This was a tough one to write. R's nightmares of vivisection have come true.

Only a few chapters left. You do want the next one, right?


	28. Chapter 28 - Suspended

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, taken by soldiers inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 28 – Suspended

_With a shock I realized it was real. Though I struggled, I felt the knife cutting open my chest. I saw more than heard Nora trying to stop the surgeon, and being pulled back. Her eyes met mine, and they were full of tears, then she was gone._

_I began to wonder if I was being vivisected like the other Dead I had seen on my first day in the Grigio dome._

_Finally, mercifully, things went dark, as the pain once again overwhelmed everything else. I could hear my own breathing, and nothing else. Then I heard nothing._

A horrific pain hit me repeatedly, forcing me back to consciousness. I tried to slip away, to crawl into some part of my being where I couldn't feel, but it persisted. I felt as if I was being crushed from the inside out, and whatever was hitting me was shredding me internally by making me move.

I finally realized that something was on my chest, and that large bursts of pain were emanating from it.

I opened my eyes briefly, blinking in the bright lights, and saw two masked figures hovering above me. Everything was blurry, as I was having trouble focusing, and breathing was very difficult. I pushed past the pain to try to make sense of the blurs in front of my eyes, squinting in an attempt to focus.

It seemed that one person had brown hair and was holding something metal in his or her hands. The other person was tall, had blond hair, and appeared to be a man. He pushed aside a face mask, and I saw his lips moving as he said something. "R?" Was that what he said?

I struggled to think, as I thought I might have recognized him, but it slipped away.

I craned my neck around as I heard a beeping sound from somewhere nearby. This meant something, something quite serious I was sure. So I tried hard to focus on it. It was rhythmic, but not steady. As suddenly as it started, it stopped.

It was too much. It was all too much. The darkness, the too bright lights, the pain. A memory of a smiling girl with blonde hair and blue eyes flashed through my mind, and I felt myself smile back at the memory. Then, as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone.

_I must not have made the transition_, I thought. I was leaving, going to final death. I wondered if there was a Heaven or Hell waiting for me. Would I be reunited with my own, now forgotten, family there? Or would I be in the Hell I deserved for years of feeding on the Living?

I faded away again, consumed by pain. As darkness descended, I felt something soft brush across my lips.

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Next up is the last chapter. Are you curious? Let me hear from you!


	29. Mother's Day

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured and taken by soldiers inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

This chapter came from a suggestion made by haiku-reviewer COMET MOON

- The next (and final) chapter of R's experience will go up at the usual time tonight. -

MOTHER'S DAY

(This chapter is in Third Person Point of View)

As the night of the battle began to turn to morning, an exhausted General Steiger formally promoted Colonel Rosso to General Rosso with the full support of the leaders of the other domes.

They had spent several hours on high level calls to the fortress cities, reporting the events of the evening. Not surprisingly, their news had been met with a mix of guarded optimism and incredulity.

Newly appointed General Rosso was once again taking the lead, in talking to the Memphis Dome. "Trust is key," he said. "Last night, the Living forces were badly outnumbered. The fact that the Dead were not only willing to fight the Boneys, but also to take the lead and act as the front line gave our soldiers critical cover on the field. My men were able to make targeted shots at the advancing Boneys, who still fought, however briefly, after their leader was taken down."

There was a short pause on the other end of the line, and then the Memphis General came back on the line. "My sentries are reporting that the Dead are massing outside our gate. They are not trying to break it down, though. They are just standing out there, or rather, kind of moving back and forth on their feet. It's as if they are waiting for something."

"That's what we have here, too," replied Steiger. "I'm not saying to just open the gates and let them in. You need the trust of your soldiers, as well, for this to work."

Rosy and Steiger exchanged pained looks after Steiger made this remark. Having R shot by one of their own men had been devastating to their hopes of turning the plague around. But it underscored for them that they needed their soldiers to act out of trust. Obeying orders while carrying guns may have created a disaster. No one was sure how things would happen with R gone. Would the transformation process continue for the other Dead?

The call was interrupted by a knock on the door. The Lieutenant opened it to admit one of Rosy's top aides.

"Colonel Rosso, Sir, may I speak to you?" asked the aide. "I think it's important."

Steiger and Rosso exchanged looks, and Steiger nodded for Rosso to take a break while he continued the task of briefing the other domes.

"What is it?" Rosy asked his exhausted aide once they were outside.

"Just something I think you should see," replied the aide. "I'm almost one hundred percent certain, but…I would like you to confirm the identity of one of the Dead outside."

As they walked to the gate in the early morning light, the aide continued. "She came with part of a larger group. I didn't notice her at first, but I thought you should see as well."

When they arrived at the front wall, the soldier led Rosy up to one of the watch towers, then took the spotlight and moved it in a sweeping motion over the crowd of Dead below, finally stopping on one.

Rosy looked down through his binoculars, and then exclaimed, "Oh, my God. I see her"

"It's who I thought?" asked the aide excitedly.

"I believe so," said Rosy.

The both stared at the slender woman with familiar blonde hair, wearing a blue dress that was now torn and ragged.

"I believe it's Sharon Grigio, John's wife," said Rosy.

They turned around to see Steiger climbing up to their post. "We decided to take a short break so that the other domes could brief their staff," Steiger said. "What is happening? Are the Boneys reforming their lines?"

Rosy pointed to the woman in the spotlight and passed him the binoculars, saying, "Julie's mother is out there."

Steiger took a deep breath before looking. "Are you sure?"

Rosy nodded.

"Then let's go get her," Steiger said simply.

Together, the three men went down to the front gate and out into the assembled Dead to reclaim Mrs. Grigio.

She came with them quietly, her grace and free spirit long gone, replaced with vacant gray eyes and a gore-stained, torn dress. Though Rosy said her name several times, she didn't show any sign of recognition.

"We need to get her bathed, at least, and into clean clothes before letting Julie see her," said Rosy.

"Is Julie still in the operating room?" Steiger asked. "The doctor said they lost R late last night, though they tried everything. Nora and the tall blond Dead, M I think he was called, insisted on staying with her. None of them have come out yet. We should probably go see about her."

"She might not have been able to save her father," Rosy said quietly. "But the change she and R brought about may yet allow her to save her mother."

VERY SHORT, I KNOW. JUST A SWEET LITTLE MOTHER'S DAY GIFT.

I do not remember that Isaac Marion ever gave Julie's mother's first name. If it was in there, send me a PM, and I'll update the chapter.

PLEASE REVIEW. NEXT CHAPTER IS THE LAST ONE, GUYS! I WILL BE POSTING IT TONIGHT.

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	30. Chapter 29 - Waking Up

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, and taken by soldiers inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Quick note: Last weekend, FanFiction was experiencing a number of technical problems. I didn't know the extent of the issues when I posted the Mother's Day chapter yesterday, on Mother's Day.

The chapter was just supposed to be a sweet little bonus piece, outside of the regular posting schedule. This world I've been writing in for the past three months is so unremittingly harsh and bleak that I thought I would post something that showed a bit more hope.

After posting that chapter, I got a better feel for the technical problems the platform was experiencing, and decided to be safe and not post the next regular chapter until the problems were fixed.

It seems that they are resolved now, so I'm posting the regular chapter.

Thanks to everybody who's been reading and reviewing!

Chapter 29 – Waking Up

_I faded away again, and as darkness descended, I felt something soft brush across my lips._

I gasped as I felt someone above me. Everything was jumbled. Air, I needed air. I couldn't breathe, and there was something…I choked and began to struggle in the darkness as I felt tubes being pulled out of my throat.

Finally the sounds around me started to make sense.

"R, I'm here. Open your eyes and look at me! R!" a voice was calling to me from somewhere on the other side of the darkness.

I opened my eyes, trying to reach for my throat as I greedily sucked in air, and saw the face of an angel bending over me. She had blond hair and matching eyes. Yellow eyes. With tears falling from them, tears she was wiping away with the back of her hand.

I blinked rapidly, trying to focus. She touched my cheek with her hand.

"Hi," she said softly.

_Julie,_ I thought. _That's Julie – but her eyes? They're yellow. Weren't they blue? _"Hi," I rasped out.

Another woman's voice behind her said, "You gave us quite a scare there, R."

I didn't want to take my eyes off of this face, which was familiar yet strange with the yellow eyes, but I looked around. I tried to move my hands again, but couldn't. Suddenly they were free, and I lifted one and held it up in front of my face. My body felt full of movement, sensations that were vaguely familiar, as from a long distant past. I began to realize that I was feeling my pulse and respiration, as I was breathing, and blood was flowing. There was pain too, but I pushed that away for the moment.

I reached out to touch Julie's face and said, "Hi," again, more strongly.

"You're back," she said. "Your eyes, though. They were gray, now they're…"

"Yellow? Like yours?" I said, realizing that I could speak more easily, even if my throat was raspy.

"Wait, what?" the other woman's voice said. "Julie, look at me," she demanded.

Julie turned her head, and I heard a gasp. "Oh my God. Your eyes match his!"

Julie turned back to me. "We're alike now," she said as she stroked my face.

"What happened?" I asked.

"We lost you," the brown-haired girl, whom I finally recognized as Nora, said.

"Remember…me?" a new voice asked.

I turned and saw a tall blond man, or rather a Dead, standing on my other side. He smiled, a real smile. He was wearing scrubs and had a surgical face mask pulled down around his neck. M, it was M. Names were coming back now.

"Being in here, operating room…I remembered," M said. "I was…a doctor. Told Nora…what to do."

"Wow," I said.

"Hands still…useless," he said sadly, holding them up in front of him.

"You'll get it back. Look at R," Nora said.

"Kiss me?" M asked simply.

"Yeah, right," Nora laughed. "I think Julie's got the kiss of life."

M laughed. "No harm…trying."

I laughed, startling everyone. M was still M. But the way he was looking at Nora…he seemed focused and quite happy. My laugh didn't last long, as it quickly turned into a choke and gasp, as I found my throat raw and uncooperative.

"It's from the breathing tube," Nora said. "Your throat will be sore for a bit."

I tried to sit up, but found it was difficult.

M leaned forward. "Let me…help," he said, grunting as he pulled me up to a sitting position. I swung my legs over the edge of the surgery cart, preparing to get down.

"Oh, no," Nora said, putting out her hands to stop me. "You're not going to walk. I can't believe even Julie's kiss can cure all that you've just been through. I'm getting a wheel chair."

I nodded, as I did feel weak.

Julie was standing next to the hospital cart, still staring at my face.

"You have some color in your cheeks, and all the gray and black is gone. What's left is more like human bruising," she said, stroking my back.

I reached for her hand, taking it in my own and sighing.

"What happened out there?" I asked.

Before Julie could answer, Nora reappeared with a wheelchair. As M helped me into it, she started to fill me in. "Once Julie's Dad was gone, the Boneys became disorganized. They did fight, sort of, but the soldiers were able to shoot them. We lost some of the Dead, mostly those who went out first, ahead of everyone else, but we didn't lose any of the Living soldiers."

I looked at M. "Any of our friends?"

He nodded sadly. "Green polo shirt guy…red-head with torn-stockings girl…and lady with the shopping bag," he replied.

"We never knew their names," I whispered.

"They didn't either…but I think…found peace…helping Living…" M replied.

I nodded my head in agreement, and we stared at one another for a minute, thinking of our friends who were gone.

Finally Nora rolled me out of the operating room and into the street. We were attracting a lot of attention, and initially I looked down at my lap, worrying about being shot again. Suddenly we heard clapping so I looked back up. The other Living started looking around, and then when they saw me, clapping and cheering.

Nora said, "What the…well, all right then." She motioned for M to push the wheelchair, and she started clapping too.

Rosy and Lieutenant Holton appeared at the front of the crowd, apparently drawn by the noise.

Rosy looked surprised but happy to see us. "Good to see you, R," he said. "The doctor told me that he lost you."

"He did," said Nora simply. "Julie brought him back. Look at their eyes."

The two men looked between Julie and me, and they both appeared as startled as Nora had originally. Rosy, of course, was the first to recover. "The color looks wonderful on you, Julie," he said gallantly.

M shrugged. "Leave the compliments…to me," he said.

As Nora and M pushed my wheelchair up the block, I realized we weren't headed for the guest quarters, but rather a new direction. "Where are we going?" I asked.

"Home," replied Julie simply. "I put in for a transfer to this dome and was assigned permanent housing. We live here now."

I smiled and reached for Julie's hand. I liked the sound of that. Living. Here. And especially, the "we" part.

THE END

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I have an Epilogue I can post in a few days, if there is enough interest. Let me know if you want to see it.


	31. Chapter 30 - Epilogue

What if R and Julie hadn't met outside the city? What if R had been captured, and taken by soldiers inside the fortified city of the Living? A different version of the R/Julie story, one where they meet in her world, not his.

Isaac Marion owns Warm Bodies. I just enjoy playing with the characters.

A Dark Negative of Love

Chapter 30 – Epilogue

-Two weeks later-

I was finally getting my strength back. My recovery was slow, as, I was recovering not only from being shot in the back, but from actually being Dead for…who knows how long.

The medics wanted me to stay in the hospital, but I couldn't go back. Every time I thought of those rooms, I could only remember seeing the knife descending. No anesthesia. Living the nightmares of my early transition to a Living.

The surgeon explained later that he thought that because I was a Dead, I would not experience pain. But even back in the Operating Room, I sensed that he thought he was wasting his time, removing a bullet from a zombie.

General Steiger quietly assured me that he had put a nurse on the surgeon's team in order to monitor his contacts with the "Transition Dead," as we were now called.

I let it go, as it was in the past. The Dead were beginning to recover, none as quickly as me, though. But some did not recover. It seemed that those who died quickly from the trauma of being bitten, without any other injuries or illnesses, had the best chance of making the transition completely. Others became consumed with infections during the transition, and their bodies finally seemed to just give up.

But all those who died were given burials. Some of the Transitioning, when they realized they would not make it back to the Living, requested burial in the new park, where the Dead who had met their final deaths during the battle with the Boneys had been laid to rest. Generals Steiger and Rosso had declared the site a memorial and designed a park with a monument to the Spirit of Bravery. They planned to dedicate it to those who us who had fought either for, or to become, Living.

As for the others, those who were successfully transitioning, it seemed that just spending time around the Living aided the process. After the soldiers made their sweep of the city outside of the fortified wall, shooting any Boneys they could find, they came back and opened the gates to the rest of Dead.

I had to watch from our apartment window, but I saw them all standing by the gate, patiently waiting. The Living arrived in clusters for the first meetings. It took a little while, but finally a few Living stepped forward to meet with the Dead. They paired off for talks. I was told that most of the contacts on that first day lasted about 15-20 minutes. Most of the early contacts were made by soldiers who were a bit more comfortable with the idea, as they had fought with the Dead and had more faith in the process. But overcoming years of fear was understandably hard on them all.

Slowly, the Dead were allowed to come beyond the gates and their assigned space by the tunnel into one of the sectors. They waited in the colorful little parks that were dispersed throughout the city. The Living felt comfortable there, and were more likely came out and join the Dead for a few minutes. Time that grew longer as the days passed.

On one of my walks with Julie, as I continued in my long, slow attempt to recover my strength, I found a soldier waiting outside our apartment building.

He stepped forward awkwardly, asking abruptly, "May I shake your hand?"

I said, "Of course," extending my hand in his direction.

He hesitated before taking my hand, and then said, "I'm the one who shot you out there. I thought you had turned on her and were eating her." He paused and then blurted out, "I'm sorry. I just wanted to say that I'm glad I didn't kill you that night."

I couldn't think of anything to say, but Julie stepped in. "Thank you for coming. We understood that you thought you were defending me."

He nodded, and said, "Yes, Ma'am. That's exactly what I thought. It was so dark, and everything was so uncertain. I just reacted." Then he turned and left, disappearing into the streets of the next block.

Julie and I exchanged glances, and then she reached out and touched my cheek. "It's happening, though it's slow. It will just take time."

I knew she was referring to the warming up of the relations between the former Dead and the Living, but I was thinking it might refer to our own relationship. I loved her so much, and the feelings seemed to increase each day as I found my way closer to being a healed, living human being.

But I also knew that she needed time. We had barely known one another a week before I had been shot, and it was her boyfriend Perry's death that had brought us together in the first place. She needed time to do her own healing.

Nora and M were a different story. M had known immediately that Nora was for him, though he was having a tough time convincing her.

Nora had been assigned an apartment next door to Julie's. There was an adjoining door between the two apartments, and the girls left it open. M always started out visiting me, but quickly made his way to Nora's.

In the early days, trying to break the awkwardness between them, she showed him her medical text books, but he said he was still struggling with reading.

"But you knew what to do in the surgery that day," Nora reminded him.

"I knew because…you needed it. That's why it came…back," he told her.

"Yes, and Julie was there," Nora added.

M shook his head. "No, it was you. And…R, of course. But you."

"Julie," she said softly.

"You are my Julie…then," he replied, reaching for her hand.

She gave a quick smile and then bit her lip, blushing.

"So beautiful," he said quietly. "You don't see yourself…clearly."

"I've seen myself all my life," Nora retorted. "I'm the girl who the guys in study hall ignored."

"They were blind…and you smell so good, too," M said.

"OK, that's just weird," Julie chimed in.

"No, it's true. And as long as I'm…this way…I want to enjoy it," M said firmly, bending over Nora's hand, inhaling gently.

I looked over at him. "It doesn't completely go away," I said. "But now, the smell doesn't make me hungry."

Nora jumped up, yanking her hand away from M and knocking over the chair as she leapt away.

"Sorry," I added. "That was thoughtless."

M laughed, reaching for her. "Not hungry. Not to eat…anyway."

Nora picked her chair up and sat back down cautiously, but put her arms behind her back. It took a while for M to coax her in to putting her hands in front again.

-One month later-

M is now almost full Living. His eyes are still gray, but he has color in his face, and sometimes his heart sputters into action, then stops. He and Nora are inseparable, though this is mostly due to his dogged determination. She is beginning to get a sparkle in her eye when she looks at him, though. I think she started to feel something for him while they were in surgery with me that terrible night, but she didn't trust the feelings. This world has not been kind to Nora.

Today, he and Nora are leaving for a trip with Miles, the truck driver.

"We're going out to visit the Memphis dome and maybe a few other places. See if they need anything," M says. His speech is almost normal, not breaking up several times a sentence.

"You got your shotgun?" Julie asks Nora.

Nora grins as she pulled it out of her shoulder holster. "Old Faithful is right here. You had to ask?"

Julie laughs. There are still occasional sightings of Boneys, but most of them are dispatched quickly when found. They are usually discovered walking aimlessly, often in circles, or just sitting on the ground, not moving. Final Death seems to be a gift for them.

The few Dead that are found are no longer hungry for the Living and seem eager to get to the cities. Whatever transformation is happening, it seems to have spread like wildfire and is covering the entire globe. Was it Julie that started it? Or did it just need a spark of trust to turn the tide of the plague that nearly eliminated mankind?

Now our work is to restore the world back to the Living, and to remember where we came from so we don't go back.

After waving to Nora and M as long as we can see them, I take Julie's hand in mine. Fingering the small velvet box I've been carrying in my pocket for days, I keep trying to get up the courage to ask Julie for her hand in marriage.

The world is looking beautiful again. Just like the final lines of the Louis Armstrong song I played for Julie on my airplane so long ago, on the morning after we met, "Yes I think to myself ...what a wonderful world."

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